Lovestruck by Moonlight
by Tia-Lewise
Summary: A passionate encounter in the Crocus palace gardens leaves Levy and Gajeel with a lot more than they feel ready to handle. Now is the time for them to mature and come together as more than just lovers. Levy's luck is running low these days; will their relationship survive? Post-Grand Magic Games AU, Gajevy/GaLe.
1. Chapter 1

_I'm a recent Fairy Tail convert, and I'm seriously into the relationship between Levy and Gajeel. As soon as I watched episode 199 I knew I had to write something about it. As I write this, I'm partway through the Tartaros arc, so I'm aware there's probably much that will happen that overrides any events that I write about - so I guess you should think of this as an AU from the Grand Magic Games onwards. Please be aware that this chapter contains sexual content, those of a sensitive nature or under 18 should skip by._

 _I had some great reviews within less than 24 hours of uploading! Thanks guys. I am making a small tweak to this chapter, then I will be uploading the next one or so._

 **Obvious disclaimer that I do not own Fairy Tail. Credit goes to Hiro Mashima.**

* * *

"What the hell're you crying for?"

Oh, I just couldn't help it. My heart has been in my throat almost constantly all night, my whole body flooded with fear at the prospect of losing my friends. I've never been as afraid as I was when the dragons attacked. All I could do was watch, helpless. But they're okay… _he's_ okay.

He stands in front of me, hands in his pockets, appearing a little surprised at the tears running down my cheeks. He looks strange, wearing a fancy suit with his hair, usually so long and wild, tied back. Behind him, the festivities roar on. I didn't really want to be in there,not right now, I'm not ready.

"I don't exactly know why…I'm sorry." I dab at my cheeks with a smile. In truth, I'm just so happy to have him back, whole and unharmed.

"Come on, you don't have to apologise." Gajeel shakes his head, bemused. "It's been a rough couple of days, huh? Guess I can't blame you for being upset."

It's not often he's so soft with me. Well, only when we're alone. He probably gets a bit embarrassed if the rest of the guild are around. I'm a little proud that I'm the only one, besides Lily I suppose, to see this side of him. I can't help but smile wider at him. He raises an eyebrow. "What's up?" he asks.

"Nothing…just…" I stand from my chair, brushing down my skirt. I bought it in town when we found out about the banquet. It's lovely, my favourite shade of orange. Princess Hisui had offered me the pick of her wardrobe, but I'm just not well-endowed enough to fill out her dresses. "Hey, Gajeel…you wanna blow this joint? I don't fancy the party at all really. What say we explore the palace a little?"

He chuckled at my suggestion. "You really _are_ a rebel, shrimp. Hell, why not. I got nothing better to do."

"Brilliant! Let's go then."

He smirks as I take his arm. "You know, shrimp, people will talk if they see us like this."

"Let them," I scoff. I honestly couldn't care less. You'd think after what he put me and my teammates through during the Phantom Lord attack that I'd hate him, but no. I guess to him it was just business, something he had to do. He's shown me more than enough times now that he'd do anything to take his actions back. His promise to me that he would never hurt me again rings true in all his actions. I love him for it, and right now, I have him all to myself. Seriously, the sexual tension is _thick_ in here. I'm sure he's aware of it too as we walk along the palace halls. I've seen the way he looks at me sometimes (and I bet he's caught me staring a few times too!). Just little things…how he talks with me, the easy-going smiles only I ever see, all the times he's let me give him a friendly hug or kiss his cheek. Oh, how he blushed the first time I did that! It was adorable. I know he wants me, I've just been too nervous to make it known to him.

But I'm going to tell him tonight. Now. As soon as I pluck up the courage. I pull myself a little closer to him as we walk; he looks down at me with a curious expression for a moment but says nothing. There are very few guards around, maybe they're enjoying the fun too. We're pretty much free to wander to our hearts' content.

Gajeel gives a few sniffs as we approach a door. "We're near the palace gardens. Probably gonna be empty this time of night."

"Ooh, a bit of privacy," I giggle.

He looks down at me again, grinning. "What are you plotting, shrimp?"

"Nothing!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever you say." He pushes open the door. His nose is rarely wrong! The gardens stretch out before us, lit softly by moonlight. It's a beautiful sight. I rest my head on Gajeel's shoulder, sighing happily. "I'm glad this place didn't get damaged by the dragon attack."

Gajeel doesn't reply immediately, but gives me a little shove forwards. "Go on then, get exploring," he says when I throw a questioning glance at him. Laughing, I run off into the maze of hedges. He'll sniff me out for sure, but I don't mind. I just want to play.

I'm lost within a minute with no idea where I came in or which turn I made last. I can't hear Gajeel anywhere nearby. The minutes tick by and I start to become nervous. Where did he go? Finally I locate the exit and glance around. No sign of him. I bet he's hiding from me somewhere nearby, but I don't have a Dragon Slayer's nose, so there's no chance in hell I'll be able to find him. Ooh, I hope I haven't scared him off by being too forward with my hints. "Gajeel?" I call out. No response. Aw, man.

"Gotcha."

I scream, jumping in shock. His hands grab my shoulders and he laughs, a real laugh full of mirth. He'd appeared behind me with no noise whatsoever, and now he's laughing into my hair. "You ass!" I scowl, turning and pushing him. "You frightened me!"

"Hey, not my fault you got lost in there." He cocks his head towards the maze. "You wanna go again?"

"Promise you won't jump out at me again?"

"I make no promises," he grins. "Off you go."

Rolling my eyes, I head into the maze again. I'm not mad at him though, it's hard to stay mad at him. The tension between us is thicker than it was inside the palace, I don't think I can resist him much longer. Everything about him is just so gorgeous…stop Levy, stop. Oh man, he works me up something rotten.

Oh hey, a statue. I guess I'm in the centre of the maze now. I reach out and touch it, feeling the smooth marble. It's a dragon, tall and towering, wings spread wide. I didn't know this was here. "It's so pretty," I can't help murmuring to myself. A rustle nearby alerts me to Gajeel's presence, and he steps out, smirking.

"As are you."

I stare at him, shocked. "What…did you just say?"

"You heard me." Suddenly, his arms are round my waist and I'm gazing up into his deep red eyes. My heart is hammering and I can feel a blush heating my cheeks. His face is impassive, but his eyes are roving constantly, across my own face and downwards to my chest before flicking up to meet my eyes again. I swallow nervously, waiting for him to speak again. He does so with a small chuckle. "Come now, Levy, you didn't think I wouldn't realise what you were up to?"

All I can utter is a squeak. I'm rumbled. He's being serious, he must be, he never uses my name, ever. Holy crap, he's backing me up, he's backing me up…I feel cool marble pressing against my back and Gajeel's breath hot and heavy against my neck. Oh god, is this really happening?

"You have no idea," he sighs, "how long I've wanted to do this to you..." I bite my lip and arch my neck, allowing him better access as he kisses and nips the sensitive skin. Words can't express how good it feels. Heat is pooling rapidly in my belly, my body trembling with need. When he lifts his head, I pull his face towards mine, our lips meeting in a kiss brimming with burning passion. His tongue quickly invades my mouth and I moan against his lips. God, I need him, I need him _now…_

I can feel Gajeel's hands drifting downwards, pulling my long skirts up my legs, exposing them to the night air. I instinctively lift a leg up to wrap round his waist, tugging him closer. His wandering hands stop mid-thigh and he utters a pleased groan against my lips. "What do we have here?" he asks quietly.

Oh boy. I'd forgotten about the stockings. Erza had given them to me to wear under the dress so I'd feel sexier, not that I particularly needed or wanted to, but I appreciated her gesture all the same and put them on. They're a sheer nude colour with lacy tops held up by a rubbery substance on the inside. They were a little uncomfortable at first but now I like them, and I think Gajeel _definitely_ does. "Levy, you little vixen," he breathes as he strokes the bare skin above them. I love the feel of his calloused fingers wandering my flesh.

His lips return to mine and my hands start to unbutton his shirt, exposing his powerfully muscled chest and toned stomach. He growls when I run my palms over the expanse of skin, enjoying my touch. He gasps when my hands move lower, skimming over the bulge in his trousers. "Damn, Levy…you carry on like this and I'm going to end up fucking you right here in this maze," he groans, pulling away from my lips and resting our brows together, panting, but I don't relent, continuing to tease him. He feels huge underneath the fabric restraints…I wonder he would feel inside me. Every fibre of my being is hoping I'll find out.

I start to undo his belt, but he shakes his head. "Not yet," he murmurs, grabbing my wrists and pinning them above my head with one hand, the other hiking my dress up again. He strokes me almost curiously through my underwear, and I can't help but moan, I've never been touched there before but I'm so turned on right now, my nerves seem to be ten times more sensitive. Gajeel moves the flimsy fabric to the side and pushes two fingers in straight away; a scream tears from my throat and I throw my head back in pleasure, crying out his name. The hand pinning mine above me lets go to bring my other leg round his waist, and I cling to his shoulders, panting and gasping as he thrusts the fingers in and out steadily. I can't believe we're actually doing this, out in the open where anyone could see us, but I don't care. I'm so lost in the overload of sensations washing over me that honestly, the whole of Fairy Tail could show up right now and I don't think we would stop.

The heat in my belly starts to knot itself up and I rock my hips desperately against his movements, knowing I'm close to release. Gajeel pushes in a third finger and changes his angle so his hand rubs my clitoris at the same time. That does it for me, and I hurtle over the edge with a loud cry, hands moving to and gripping his hair tightly. He swallows my cry with a bruising kiss as he slides his fingers out. Our positions shift and he turns me round to lie down on the grass. I can feel my chest heaving as I try to steady my breaths, and he gazes down at me with pure lust in his eyes. "God, you drive me crazy," he whispers. "You're so fucking sexy I can hardly stand it."

I shake my head. "Me? Sexy?"

"Did I fucking stutter? Yes, you." He positions himself on top of me and begins to kiss my neck again, hands moving to caress my breasts. I moan as he teases my nipples through the dress and buck my hips up to grind against him. "You're not like any of the others," he growls, littering small bites over the junction between my neck and shoulder. "I don't want them or their ridiculously sized assets. I want yours, I want _you._ And I am going to have you, right here, right now."

Oh lord, I think I nearly came again from his words alone. This time he lets me undo his belt, pushing his trousers and boxers down together till his length springs free.

Holy hell.

He's huge.

He feels so smooth under my touch. A shuddering gasp escapes him when I trace my fingers down it, feeling the spot of wetness at the head. I was right, he's huge. How that's going to fit inside me, I don't know, but I guess we're going to find out. His eyes find mine again and for the first time, a flicker of hesitation crosses his face. I smile up at him and pull him down for a soft kiss. "It's okay," I tell him reassuringly. "I'm ready."

"You sure?"

"Yeah."

"Okay." Gajeel takes himself in hand and moves my underwear aside again before he presses the head of his shaft into the apex of my thighs. I gasp, quivering with anticipation. "This might hurt for a minute," he murmurs, "but it'll pass, I promise."

I nod. "I know. Have you done this before?"

He shakes his head, which surprises me, but I'm too far gone to care. My legs lock around his waist to urge him onwards. He takes a deep breath and I feel him slip inside, inch by thick, throbbing inch. He grits his teeth, breathing heavily. "Damn it, Levy, you're so tight..."

Oh, it's so wonderful…feeling him on top of me, hearing his soft pants…then he pauses and I know he's waiting to see how I'm adjusting. My legs tighten, urging him inwards; one quick snap of the hips and he's buried to the hilt, moaning into my neck. It wasn't all that comfortable, I won't lie, like a sharp sting, but it's fine, it's fading away, and now he's moving against me, in and out...oh god, I can't even form my thoughts properly, it feels so good…

My hands slide over his chest and round to his back, raking my nails down, and he hisses with pleasure as he crushes our mouths together. His pace picks up and his thrusts become harder, I call out his name in a lusty groan and he responds in turn Hearing my name tumble from his lips has never sounded sexier.

I still need more, I want the upper hand, so I swing my hips to the side and flip our positions so Gajeel is the one lying in the grass and I'm straddling him. His eyes widen at his predicament, an expression of surprise that quickly melts into one of pure bliss as I give an experimental rock of the hips. The new angle is wonderful, an entirely different sensation. "Do that again," Gajeel gasps, his hands stroking my thighs, and I comply, rolling my hips over his and bringing forth the most amazing noises from the Dragon Slayer beneath me. My eyes are closed, head back, crying out in sheer ecstasy. Why did we wait so long to do this?

I feel him move, thrusting upwards in sync with me, and he grips my waist with one hand, the other rubbing teasing circles over my clitoris. It sends spasms of pleasure through me and I feel my thighs tighten in response as I shudder. "Don't stop," I manage to choke out.

"I won't," he grins.

I'm writhing above him now, close, so close...

"Come for me, Levy," he whispers. The starry sky seems to shatter before my eyes as the climax hits me, tipping me over the edge and lighting my senses on fire. Gajeel flips us so I'm on my back again, throwing my legs over his shoulders and slamming into me with such force I swear we shift backwards a few inches. The waves of pleasure from my orgasm continue to hit me as he thrusts, and just when I think I can't take anymore, a feral growl rumbles deep in his chest and his grip on my legs tightens to a bruising grasp. "Oh, fuck," he moans as I feel him spill his release inside me, a hot spurt that makes me shiver.

Slowly, his hands release my legs and I slide them down his sides to settle at his waist again, arms winding round his neck to pull him down gently. He presses his lips against mine with a contented sigh.

Wow. My head must be in heaven. I just had sex with Gajeel. Outside. In the palace gardens. And I couldn't be happier.

"You okay, shrimp?" Gajeel asks me, drawing back to look at me. A gentle smile graces his face. He's happy too.

"I'm fine," I tell him, kissing him again. I can't help but giggle. "I can't believe we just did that, Gajeel!"

"I can," he replies with a smirk. "Much more fun than a stiff old party, eh?"

They're all probably wondering where we are. Gajeel pulls out of me with a little shudder, then stands and sets about tidying himself up as I do the same. Oh man, there's no way I can go back in like this, there are grass stains up my back and my underwear is soaked through. Thank heavens my skirt is long enough to hide the semen running down my thighs. Ugh! I didn't think sex was this messy. "I can't go back in there, Gajeel!" I wail. "I need to go to the hotel and change clothes."

He chuckles at me, probably extremely amused at the state I'm in. "Alright, shrimp. I'll walk you back." He takes his suit jacket off and drapes it over my shoulders, which hides the worst of the grass stains. "Best start coming up with excuses fast," he says as we set off, "because you know if we come across anyone, it's going to be pretty damn obvious what happened."

"They're probably all drunk anyway, I doubt they'll remember anything in the morning," I reply with a giggle. "Are you going to go back to the party?"

He shakes his head. "Nah. I'll see you back to the hotel and then I'll turn in for the night. You?"

"I guess I'll turn in as well. I've had my fun for the night!" I wink at Gajeel, and he laughs softly. Oh...I could listen to that laugh all day.

Thankfully, we don't run into anyone as they're all still in the banquet hall, and reach the hotel where we've all been staying. It's silent, since everyone is partying away up at the palace. "Here's my room," I tell Gajeel when we reach the door. "Thanks for walking me back."

"Don't sweat it, shrimp," he replies. A slightly awkward silence falls over us. I mean, how are we supposed to act with each other now, after we just did all that? What will we be? I probably should have stopped to consider this before my loins took over my brain. Then he leans in and captures my lips with a soft kiss. "We can talk when we get back to the guild in a few days," he murmurs. "I'm sure we've both got some thinking to do."

"Mm," I agree with a nod. He flashes me his usual smirk and ruffles my hair, as if nothing is amiss, then sets off down the hallway for his own room. Suddenly I realise I still have his suit jacket on. "Gajeel!" I call after him. "You forgot-"

"It's fine, hang onto it," he calls back, waving a hand nonchalantly without looking back. I giggle and pull it tighter around myself as I watch him go.

Well, that certainly was a memorable evening. Now, I need a bath, stat!

* * *

 _Please tell me what you think. I've written a lot of this story on the Word app for Android so it doesn't quite look right to me the whole time I'm doing it. If anything needs to be improved I would much appreciate your feedback!_

 _Tia_


	2. Chapter 2

_Many thanks again for the reviews! I'm guessing by the story summary you all mostly figured out what was going to happen afterwards. Just a note - some of this will be taken from my own personal experience._

* * *

"Positive..."

Oh, crap.

Why? Why me?

Though I really shouldn't need to ask that. I'm an idiot. A real fricking idiot. I stare at the little stick in my hand and the two pink lines, a million and one questions and scenarios running through my head. Oh god, oh god...what am I supposed to tell him?

"What does it say?" Lucy calls from the other side of the bathroom door. She's the only one who knows what's been going on, the only person I can trust. How could I even approach Jet and Droy about this? No, it's strictly girls only right now.

Slowly I open the door and show her the test. She gasps, then screams. "Levy! You're pregnant! Eek, you're going to be a mother!" She throws her arms around me, trapping me in a tight hug. "Oh, can I be godmother? Can I help you pick baby clothes? Can I-"

"Lu! Steady on!" I stammer, pushing her off. She puts a hand behind her head sheepishly. "I'm...a bit confused right now," I explain as I make my way to the sofa and curl up in it. Lucy sits next to me with a sympathetic expression. "I'm too young for this, surely. And...I'm going to have to tell him, aren't I?"

"Now is preferable to him finding out when you're the size of a whale," laughs Lucy. I manage a smile at that. "When do you think it happened?"

I cast my mind back several weeks. Gajeel and I have been at it a _lot_ recently. As soon as we got back to Magnolia from the Grand Magic Games, there was none of the promised talking. Instead, we just couldn't keep our hands off each other. Lily figured out pretty quickly that things have been hot and heavy, so he's been staying with Natsu and Happy on the pretence of accompanying them on their fishing holiday, but in reality he probably just wanted to escape the fact we've been fucking like rabbits in every room in Gajeel's house.

Still...there's nothing official between us. We just have sex. He doesn't seem ready for any kind of commitment...so how is he going to react when I drop this bombshell on him, the biggest commitment I could ask of him?

"The first time," I eventually reply. "We've been using protection since then...though a fat lot of good it's done, considering the situation."

Lucy giggles like a schoolgirl. "Levy! I still can't get over that! You aren't pulling my leg, are you? You really did have sex with him in the palace gardens?"

"Yup!"

Lucy hides her face, laughing. "You're crazy! Anyone could have seen you!"

"I know, I just wasn't thinking straight."

I really _was_ crazy. Of course, stupid me didn't even think in the heat of the moment to ask Gajeel about protection. But then again, he didn't ask me either! I'm not on any kind of contraception, only because it never crossed my mind that it would be necessary anytime soon. And now look. I have a baby growing inside me.

I only realised last week that I'd missed my period and I was absolutely exhausted, so tired that Jet and Droy had to leave for our job without me, while I just dozed all day. Later, I managed to heave myself up to visit Gajeel, who took one look at me and bundled me into his bed with a book and a hot drink, telling me I looked frightful. Well cheers, you big sack of scrap! I really did feel like rubbish though. Later, he brought me some food and rubbed my shoulders till I fell asleep on him. It was wonderful...god, I wish we'd just make it official, but something seems to be stopping him and it's making me too scared to ask.

"Levy. Levy!"

Oh! I was lost in thought. My head snaps up. "Sorry, Lu. What did you say?"

"I said, when are you going to tell him?"

"Well...I guess as soon as possible. He might get mad at me if I keep it from him. But Lu..." I put my head in my hands and let out a wail. "I don't know what to do, if I want to keep it, what this means for the rest of my life as a Fairy Tail wizard...please, Lu, you need to keep this a secret for now. I'm not ready for anyone else to know yet, not Jet, not Droy, and _especially_ not the Master or Mirajane."

Lucy pats my knee. "Sure thing, Levy. This is huge for you. I promise I won't tell anyone."

* * *

A few days later, I'm at the guild, my nose in a stack of books as usual. Lucy is sat with me, writing notes for her novel, and Lily perches on my lap with a kiwi juice. He came back with Natsu and Happy the day before. He doesn't know about the pregnancy yet but it's obvious he knows the current situation with Gajeel is bothering me. "Have you sat down and had a proper talk with him yet?" he asks me. "Sometimes that's all it takes."

"I'm scared," I sigh. "Every time I try I just freeze up. It's the way he looks at me when I broach the subject...like he's scared too."

Lily frowns. He's such a good guy – well, cat, or that should be Exceed – to talk to. He doesn't judge and his advice is great, plus the fact he lives with Gajeel and knows him like the back of his paw is a bonus. "It's not like him to be afraid of anything, so I'm as puzzled as you are. However, he is very fond of you, that much is clear. It would do him good to be able to find love and settle down. You're a wonderful girl, Levy, and suited for him. I hope you're able to work something out with him."

"Awww, Lily!" I giggle, hugging him. "You're so sweet."

"I'm just honest," he replies, but I can hear the pleased tone in his voice. "Listen...go to him tonight. I'll keep out of the way so you can have your privacy."

"Thanks, Lily, but you only just got back, you should settle back in. I don't want to go kicking you out." Lily's ears turn red in response and I blush, remembering that he had pretty much caught us in the act, which prompted his rapid decision to go on holiday with Natsu and Happy. "Um...instead, could you ask him to meet me in the park later tonight? Say, at 8?" I know I'll probably have conked out completely if I leave it any later than that.

"Of course, Levy. I'll head back home to tell him now." Lily finishes his juice and then flies out of the hall.

Lucy looks up from her notes with a smile. "You're going to tell him?"

"Yeah, I can't keep it from him." I sigh, rubbing my stomach, suddenly not quite feeling well. Lucy reaches out to me with a concerned look and I bat her hands away. "I'm fine. Just a bit woozy." I've read enough to know that I might have morning sickness, or, as Bisca once put it – "every single waking moment of the damn day" sickness.

"Levy...I hope this goes well for you."

* * *

8 o'clock approaches and I'm waiting at the park, curled up under a tree with a book. It's summer, so the sun is still quite high in the sky and it's pleasantly warm. My stomach is in nervous knots as I wait for Gajeel to appear, eyes flicking up constantly to see if he's coming.

I guess it's strange that I always pick this particular tree to sit under. This is the one that Jet, Droy and I were pinned to back then. At first I hated it, didn't want to be near it. But after a while I realised the only way I was going to be able to accept Gajeel as a friend was if I faced the memory head on. So I began to visit whenever I had the time, and he would occasionally join me to reminisce. I know he still feels guilt for what happened, but only he can help himself out of that.

Bang on time, I hear the familiar crunch of metal, and I look up from my book to see him walking towards me, chewing a chunk of iron. Oh, he looks so handsome, with his bulging muscles and his long mane of hair falling around his face **.** I've spent many a night memorising those muscles, running my hands through his hair. He's swapped his usual tattered tunic for a long-sleeved shirt, and it looks great on him. "Hi, Gajeel," I smile at him as he nears.

"Shrimp," he grunts by way of greeting. "You needed to talk to me?"

"Yeah. Um...why don't you sit down?" He does so, and I put my book aside to turn and face him. He eyes me curiously. "Listen, Gajeel. There's something I need to tell you."

"Oh?" A flicker of apprehension crosses his face and I feel myself start to freeze up again. Why does this have to be so hard? Why is _he_ so worried? Tears prick my eyes, oh, this is horrible. I'm so scared...will he just leave, will he cry, will he be angry? I'm going to have to find out.

I reach out and grab his hands with my own, giving them a squeeze. "Gajeel...I took a pregnancy test today. It was positive."

He doesn't quite seem to register this at first, staring at me with a frown creasing his brow. Then he starts chewing his lip and I feel his hands tremble in mine. "You're sure?" he asks quietly.

"Pretty sure."

He pulls his hands away and rubs one over his face. "Oh, fuck..." The other hand balls into a fist and punches the floor, making me jump. Oh no, have I made him angry? Then he sighs heavily. "Well...I ain't got no say in this. It's your body, Levy...whatever you decide to do, that's fine with me. Can't pretend to be too pleased about this, but it's happened, now we've got to just deal with it."

His eyes find mine, and I can see apprehension and fear in them. I'm sure the last thing he wants is to be a father, and I don't think I want to be a mother either, if I'm honest. We're both too young for this. I reach out for him but he shies away, shaking his head. "I'm sorry, Levy. Now ain't the time for our usual stuff."

"Gajeel..." The tears are going to spill over any second. Is he going to completely reject me now? Was I stupid for thinking we could become a couple through this? Just a few days ago I felt so safe and secure in his arms, now it's going to be ripped away from me. "Gajeel...please don't leave me to cope on my own. I can't do that. I need you. We're in this mess together, please...don't walk away from me now."

I'm sure I can feel my heart starting to break. He doesn't say anything, just gazes at me with those beautiful, scared eyes. Finally, he lets me touch him, and he leans into my shoulder, winding his arms round my waist. I breathe a sigh of relief. "I'm not ready for anything like this," he whispers. "I can't...I don't know what I'm supposed to do. But...god, shrimp, you know how I feel about you, I won't just let you go like that. I'm going to support you, whatever you do. But this is more than I can deal with right now. Please just give me some time, alright? I need a clear head before I can decide what we become."

"What do you mean?" I ask.

"You know what I mean. We've been joined at the hip ever since the Grand Magic Games." He pulls back to look into my eyes again. "I love you, Levy. I love you so fucking much and I don't know what to do with that because I've never felt like this about anyone else. Just when I was starting to think we could make something of our feelings, this happens, and now I'm fucking scared." He extricates himself from our embrace and stands. "I need some time alone. Can you give me that?"

I nod slowly, feeling my tears start to fall. He gazes down at me, biting his lip, but any resolve he's holding I can see crumbling from him, and with a sigh, he turns away to walk back towards wherever he came from.

Why did it have to be like this? Now the sobs start and I can't stop them no matter how hard I try.

I can't keep this baby. There's no way I can cope, not like this.

* * *

 _Rather a change of pace here! I find my writing style always changes after the first chapter, and I'm sorry if that's happened and it's not an improvement._

 _Now, as I mentioned before, I'm taking some inspiration from my own personal experiences. I have had a child myself which is what I'll be drawing from, but my own announcement to my partner was a great deal happier than poor Levy's. Nevertheless, I remember being desperate for children when I was younger and combined with toxic teenage relationships, everything was emotional and messed up. This was what drove me to write my earlier stories, I think. But that's a story for another day. I hope this chapter was okay. Please tell me what you think._

 _Tia_


	3. Chapter 3

_Timeskips will occur from this point onwards, I'm not too great at doing them but hopefully they'll work out alright._

* * *

Three months have passed. To say things have been stressful would be sugar-coating; it's been absolutely awful. Morning sickness has hit me like a ton of bricks and whilst it doesn't often make me sick, it still knocks me for six on most days and I'm spending less and less time with the guild as I try to recuperate at home. This of course means I'm not able to take on a lot of jobs, and Jet and Droy are beside themselves with worry.

I still can't bring myself to tell them what's happened. I can't bring myself to tell _anyone._ Only Lucy knows, and she's been looking after me when she has free time. Of course, Gajeel knows too, but he isn't here. He left with Lily on a long job within days of finding out about my pregnancy. Ooh, I was so _mad_ when I found out, but I can't really say anything, he did want time after all...and if he needs to be away from me entirely in order to do that, then so be it, I guess.

After counting back, I must be about 18 weeks pregnant, and I'm still undecided as to what to do. There have been times I've wondered if I should just go ahead and have a termination, I'd be free of this stress then, right? But every time I start thinking about it, a horrible guilt overwhelms me. So now I'm leaning more towards carrying on with the pregnancy. I wonder what Gajeel will make of that. Oh, I wish he'd just come back. He must be scared out of his wits right now. Mind, I think I'm the same.

After a long nap, I head to the guild library to pick up a few more books. Yeah, I know. I have enough books to fill two libraries, but I don't get called a bookworm for nothing! The ones I want are right at the top of the shelves, and I have to use the sliding ladder to reach them. Last time I tried to use script magic to float up there, I completely lost my balance, so I won't be trying that again! "Where is it..." I murmur to myself, inspecting the spines of the books and running my fingers over them. "Aha, here." The book is stuck fast, wedged tightly, and I feel the ladder wobble a little as I pull at it. Someone doesn't want to be read! It finally comes out and I slip it into my bag with the other books I needed. Right, time to get down.

Aaaaand here come the waves of dizziness. "Crap, crap, crap," I gasp as I cling to the ladder. Pregnancy is nothing but trouble! Oh god, I'm really high up, please don't slip, please don't slip...

I slip. Obviously. I think I passed out as I fell, because I don't remember hurting myself, but when I realise what's going on, I'm in agony. Wetness at the side of my head tells me I'm bleeding, and my left leg won't support my weight when I try to stand. I think my ankle is broken. There's a dull ache in my belly, and suddenly my body floods with panic. I scream for help, hoping I'll be heard this far into the guild. Thankfully, Mirajane is by my side in an instant, all a fluster, worry set into her beautiful features. "Levy!" she cries. "Did you fall?"

"Yeah," I hiss through gritted teeth. "Can you help me up?"

"Of course! We need to get you to Wendy." She picks me up bridal style with her crazy inhuman strength, and carries me from the library into the guild hall where she shouts for Wendy. The young Dragon Slayer runs over with Carla hot on her heels, as does everyone else in the hall. "What happened, Levy? Can you sit?" she asks me.

"I think so," I reply, giving a little moan of pain when Mira shifts me to a chair. Lucy kneels beside me, taking my hand, Jet and Droy looking on worriedly with the others. "I fell off the ladder in the library, but Wendy...listen...forget about the rest for a minute," I plead. "I need you to...to check my stomach."

Wendy gives me a curious look. "Why?" Not waiting for a reply, she gathers her healing magic in her hands and passes them over my body, up and down, inspecting the damage. When her hands linger over my stomach, she gasps. "Um...Levy...it feels like there's more than one of you here."

"Yeah...I know." I grit my teeth again as a fresh wave of pain surges through my ankle. Carla dabs blood from my head with a cloth, lips pursed with concern. Wendy stares up at me in wonder, her hands unmoving. "You're pregnant?" she asks quietly. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"You're _pregnant?!"_ Jet and Droy yell in unison, and the whole guild erupts in a cacophony of cries and questions. I sigh and put my head in my hands, trying to block it all out, I can't deal with this right now. Lucy pats my leg, shaking her head. "Oh, Levy. You're really going through the mill, huh."

"Did you know?" Carla asks her.

"Yeah. I was there when she took the test."

"You should have at least told me," Wendy says disapprovingly as she works her magic. "I should have been checking up on you. No wonder you've been so sickly recently. _Be quiet, please!"_ she shouts over the din. "I need to concentrate!"

"...Sorry, Wendy..."

"Scary..."

Wendy returns to work. She casts a spell that numbs the pain somewhat for me, and Carla bandages my head while Lucy helps Wendy put a splint on my ankle. Jet and Droy bring me some water. I feel quite pampered! And sore, very sore.

After some time, Wendy looks back up with a smile. "Well, I think you'll be just fine, Levy. The babies are okay too."

Did...

Did she just say _babies?_

"B-B-Babies?" I stammer. "Not just the one?"

"Nope. You've got twins!"

 _TWINS?!_

I think I pass out again for a few seconds! When my head clears, Wendy is fanning me, looking anxious. "I'm sorry!" she cries. "I didn't mean to scare you! I'm so sorry!"

"Calm down, child," chides Carla. "It would be a shock to anyone, not just Levy." Indeed, the guild members all look like a bomb just hit, they're so dumbstruck. It must be so weird, their little bookworm expecting a baby, no babies. Oh lord, what is Gajeel going to say?

My stomach gives an unpleasant flip, and I groan, putting a hand over my mouth. "Bucket, bucket, bucket!" Mira shouts at the gawking guild members; Bisca manages to get one under my nose just in time for me to spew my guts up in the most undignified manner. How embarrassing. Lucy rubs my back, making sympathetic noises. Mira shoos the rest of the guild away so I've got some space, Wendy and Carla remaining by my side to finish patching me up.

"Morning sickness is such a bitch," I groan, shoving the bucket away. Lucy gives me some more water to rinse my mouth out.

Wendy checks the bandages on my head and nods. "You really haven't seemed yourself recently," she tells me. "Has it been bad for you?"

"It's been awful, Wendy. All I want to do is curl up at home and sleep."

"Well, you'll be able to do that once I'm done with you. There we go!" She pulls back, satisfied. "Okay, I've cast a spell on you that should ease your sickness for a while. My magic isn't strong enough to mend bones, so you're going to need crutches-"

Her words are cut off by the guild doors being thrown open with a loud bang. She jumps and squeals, looking around frantically. I frown, leaning forward to see better.

"What...the... _hell..._ happened here?!"

Oh, boy. My heart starts hammering rapidly. It's Lily, in his taller battle form. I didn't think they'd be back for another few weeks. He stares at me and the crowd of guild members, taking in the complete state I'm in. "Levy, what _happened?"_

"Levy!" Gajeel barges past Lily a moment later, who pops back into his small form. He throws his pack down – it's rather obvious from the roughed-up look of both of them that they haven't been home yet – and clatters to a halt in front of me, taking my hands in his. My face flushes and I look away. I can't believe he's having to see me like this. "Who did this to you?" he growls.

"Welcome back, Gajeel," Mira smiles, laying a hand on his shoulder. Gajeel scowls at her questioningly. "Don't worry too much, she fell off the library ladder, that's all."

"That's all? _That's all?!"_

"Gajeel," I murmur. "It's fine, I'm alright, really." He looks absolutely furious and I can't bring myself to look directly at him. "Just...a bit sore. I'll be okay once I rest up. Wendy's sorted me out."

He's still scowling. He leans in, and I assume he's checking the bandages on my head, but instead he asks quietly in my ear, "Did you keep it? Is it okay?" I nod in response. I don't want to tell him we're expecting multiples till we're alone. The guild is watching us intently, probably by now putting two and two together. Gajeel moves back and looks over my leg. "You broke this?"

"Just my ankle. I won't be able to walk properly for a while."

"Dammit, shrimp, you're a fucking klutz. I'm not even back an hour and I find you like this. I'm not trusting you at Fairy Hills, you're coming back with me."

I stare at him. "I'm sorry?"

"The fall make you deaf too? I said, you're coming back with me. I'll take care of you till you're healed up." He quickly sweeps me up into his arms, and I squeak with surprise, thumping his chest in exasperation. "Quit it," he tells me, "I ain't letting you go."

"Oh, are you going already?" Mira asks. Typical Mira, she isn't even fazed by the situation. Nothing ever bothers her, I wish I could be more like her. "Levy is going to need crutches, so please wait a moment while we get some for her."

Laki fashions crutches using her wood magic, which Lily takes from her with a polite word of thanks. Gajeel surveys the guild members with a suspicious eye as he hoists me up higher in his arms. I gasp, my ankle jolting with pain. Wendy rushes to check it over, giving Gajeel a reproachful look as she does so. "What the hell are you all staring at?" he snaps at the guild.

I sigh. "Go on, guys ...fire away."

Jet clears his throat anxiously. "Um...we just found out that Levy is pregnant. We're all a bit shocked."

"Right...and?"

"Wait, you knew?"

"Course I fucking knew, it's mine." And without a backward glance, he strolls from the guild, a gobsmacked Lily hurrying after him.

* * *

"I can't believe you just said that, Gajeel!" I moan. "I thought you needed time, and then you come back and announce that to the whole guild like everything is peachy!"

"Yeah, I had a change of heart," he replies curtly. "Now pipe down, we'll talk when we get back to mine."

I will admit, it's quite nice being held tightly in his arms. I rest my head on his chest, savouring the warmth seeping through his clothing, breathing in his gorgeous metallic scent. Lily hops up onto Gajeel's shoulder, holding the crutches Laki made for me at an angle so he doesn't hit any of us. I can see his eyes staring down at my stomach, probably dying to ask a million and one questions.

When we reach the house he shares with Gajeel he jumps off to unlock it, and Gajeel carefully deposits me on the sofa while Lily goes off to the kitchen, returning a few minutes later with drinks. He hands me a cup of tea, and I give him a grateful smile. "So, Levy," he grins, "I believe congratulations are in order. I must admit, this is unexpected. Gajeel never said a thing the whole time we were away."

"Well, I had a lot to think about," Gajeel murmurs, sitting down on the other end of the sofa, scratching his head meekly. "Didn't wanna say anything till I'd cleared my head."

"How do you feel about it now?" I ask him. He does seem a bit more relaxed, and the way he looks at me is reassuring.

He fiddles with his long black mane of hair for a few more moments as he appears to find the words. "I think...I want to give it a go," he finally says. "Being a father, I mean. That is, if you want to keep the baby."

"I do...at least, I do _now."_ I put a hand on my stomach protectively. "I didn't want to at first, but then I fell off the ladder and all I could think about was whether the baby was okay or not." I shuffle awkwardly over to Gajeel, wincing at the pain in my ankle, and reach out to take his hands with my own. just like I did the last time I saw him, only this time, he looks down at them with a small smile. "I want us to have a really good go of this," I tell him firmly, "and I need you onboard, Gajeel, because I have some big news for you." I take a deep breath. "It's two. We're having twins."

He just blinks at me. A clatter of china indicates that Lily has dropped his teacup in shock. "I...what?" Gajeel whispers. "Did you just say twins?"

"Yeah. Wendy just found out while she was healing me. She felt the energy of two babies." The colour immediately drains from Gajeel's face. He looks like he's the one that might faint this time! Lily gapes at me, eyes the size of saucers. "You're certain?" he asks. When I nod, he lets out a low whistle. "Wow. You two are going to be in for a real experience! How exciting. Have you felt any movements yet?"

"Not yet...maybe in a few weeks? I'm not sure. But honestly, I'm as shocked as everyone else. Twins! We really threw ourselves in at the deep end, eh Gajeel? ...Gajeel?" He looks pretty sickly, eyes closed and breathing heavily. Oh no...please don't freak out. I touch his cheek and his eyes open as he gives me a weak smile. "Sorry...just trying to take this in without panicking."

"I feel the same," I murmur. "I'm really going to need you by my side now, Gajeel. I hope you won't make me do this alone."

"Never. I promise." His arms wrap around my shoulders and he hugs me close to his chest, being careful not to handle me too roughly. "I put those babies in there, so it's my responsibility to take care of you and them. And as for you, I want you to rest up as much as possible. No more climbing ladders, you hear me?"

"Aye, sir," I giggle, imitating Happy, and Lily laughs in turn. He hops up into my lap and I draw him close with a free hand, cuddling him too. Sometimes I forget he's such a big tough Exceed when he's usually as tiny as he is right now, but he seems to enjoy the attention he gets nonetheless. I feel one of Gajeel's arms leave my shoulders and trail down to my stomach, brushing his fingers over it. "You do look a little bigger," he remarks softly. "Not noticeably so, but with you close to me, I can see it." He splays his hand out flat, and sudden warmth floods through me, a rush of affection for the man I love to hate. He rubs gently as he sighs, nestling his face into my hair. I'm sorry," he whispers, "for worrying you. I won't run away again, you have my word."

"Gajeel..." I smile, just enjoying the moment. If I were in a better state (and Lily was out of the room) then I'd probably be kissing him senseless, but right now, I'm content to just be held.

* * *

 _Now, at the time of writing this I've only got up to **that** bit with Levy and Gajeel in the Tartaros arc, however, I'm a sucker for spoiling myself, and the amazing Rusky-boz's Gajevy artwork revealed to me that in Gajeel's thoughts at some point in the manga, they have twins together, so that's why I went with twins here. I don't know if that event is canon or if it will ever come to be, but we'll all have to wait and see, I suppose! Thanks as always for reading._

 _Tia_


	4. Chapter 4

_Another timeskip, but only a small one. I hope you're enjoying my story so far. It's been several years since I actually uploaded anything here...I wonder if it shows in my writing style?_

* * *

Well, this is a fine how-do-you-do. And a rather embarrassing one at that. "Gajeel!" I yell, "I need you for a minute!" I'm sat in the bathroom, on the side of the bathtub with a towel wrapped around me. I wanted to have a shower, but I didn't even realise till I'd stripped off that this was never going to work out, what with my ankle and everything. It's been five days since I injured myself, and washing with a flannel just isn't cutting it now, I want a good scrub!

After a few moments, Gajeel comes upstairs and peers round the door. "You alright, shrimp?"

"No," I sigh. "I wanted a shower, but I can't get in on my own."

"You need a hand?"

"Um, I think so. Could you…help me, please?"

"Sure thing, but..." Gajeel leans against the doorframe, eyeing up the shower with a frown, "you're gonna need something to sit on, and something to support your leg. Hmm...hang on a sec." He retreats back downstairs, and I run my hand through my hair, sighing. I can feel blood caked all the way through it and it's so utterly gross. Wendy allowed me to take off the bandages yesterday when she came by to check on me. She used some of her magic on my ankle, and it doesn't hurt as much now, but I still can't bear any weight on it and she said she didn't want to interfere too much in the healing process, in case she did more harm than good and the bones didn't set back in the right place. So I just have to deal with it for now.

Gajeel has been fantastic, if a little awkward at times, making sure I'm looked after, and Carla, Wendy and Erza brought over some of my stuff from Fairy Hills so I'm not having to borrow Gajeel's all the time. Gajeel has graciously given me his bed, since his house only has one bedroom, and he's been sleeping on the sofa with Lily. I'd kind of hoped we'd be closer, that he'd be in the bed with me, that we'd be kissing and touching again, but the pregnancy seems to have invoked a change in him, like he can't face his feelings for me. I know he loves me, he's told me as much, but for the time being, we're just back to being friends, without the benefits.

Gajeel returns a few minutes later with two camping stools. "Probably could do better, but Lily had these from that fishing trip a few months back," he explains as he sets them in the tub. "They should work till you can put weight on your leg again."

I smile at him gratefully. "Thank you, Gajeel. Can you help me in now?" I move to unwrap the towel, and he averts his eyes, a pink blush on his cheeks. "Oh, stop it! It's not like you haven't seen everything before."

"Yeah, but...that was different," he mutters, scratching his head. "I, uh, I'll help you in now." He's still blushing furiously as he gently lifts me up into his arms, sliding me over into the tub and onto one of the stools.

I lift my leg up and prop it onto the other stool with a sigh. "Wow, being crippled takes a lot of independence away," I say, half to myself; Gajeel's probably too flustered to take notice. He reaches up to start the water, and I squeak as it rains down on me with a sudden chill. "Sorry," he murmurs, angling the shower head away from me. "It'll warm up in a sec." When he does, he pulls the head out of the wall bracket and directs it back over my skin, making me shudder pleasantly. "What are you doing?" I ask him.

"Helping," he replies. Bless him, he's still blushing. "I'm supposed to be taking care of you, right?"

"I can wash myself perfectly fine on my own, Gajeel." But inside, I'm thrilled. He moves the stream over my head, gently running his free fingers through it to loosen the dried blood. I've been aching to feel his hands on me again, hands that want more than to just touch my stomach and wonder about the babies inside. His soft caress feels so good, and I lean my head back with a relaxed sigh.

"Tell me if I'm being too rough, okay?" he says, moving to the spot where I hit my head, which still throbs unpleasantly from time to time. I grit my teeth as he rinses the hair there, but I bear it. Once the blood has been rinsed out he passes the shower head to me so I can rinse myself and reaches for my shampoo, squirting a big blob onto my head before rubbing it in, massaging my scalp with his calloused fingers. This is amazing, truly. It's been too long since he's touched me like this, and I can't help but give a pleased groan. His hands still instantly. "Does it hurt?" he asks.

"No, no! It's lovely, please carry on!" I practically beg. Gajeel gives a soft chuckle and continues. A deep throbbing heat is pooling between my legs at being so exposed in front of him, feeling the heady sensation of his touch. "You're so sweet," I murmur, trying to push my rising lust aside. "And maybe a little perverted. I could have done this myself, after all!"

"I don't hear you complaining," he replies as he takes the shower head from me. "Put your head back a bit, shrimp." I do so, and he rinses the lather from my hair. "Like you say, I've seen you naked before, so...I guess I shouldn't be too embarrassed, and, well...I couldn't help myself." Gajeel gives me the shower head again and gently rubs conditioner through my hair. "Things have been pretty strange recently, shrimp, so if I've been off with you then I'm sorry. My head is still all over the place right now."

I frown up at him. He looks back, red eyes fixed pointedly on my face and quite obviously trying not to wander downwards. "Is that why we haven't been intimate since you came back?"

"Well, your ankle would sort of get in the way of that anyway, but..." He sighs and takes the shower head to rinse the conditioner out. "We'll talk about it later, okay?" I nod silently, an ache of longing welling in my chest. I'd give anything to be in his arms again, to be kissed and touched, to feel him inside me and hear him cry out my name. He's so close, if it weren't for my dud ankle I'd be yanking him into the shower and having my way with him, but...he's got troubles of his own and I need to respect that. He finishes rinsing my hair and passes the shower head over a final time. "I'll be in my room, shout me when you're done and I'll help you out."

"Thank you, Gajeel," I reply. He gives me a soft smile and leans in, brushing his lips over my cheek. I gasp, but he's straightened up and left the room before I can ask him why. There's no use dwelling on it right now, I suppose, so I set about washing myself with the products Erza brought over for me. Strawberry scented, typical Erza! She does love strawberries. Oh, I feel so much better now I'm clean! I call for Gajeel and he comes back in to switch off the water and wrap a towel around me before lifting me out carefully and taking me into his room. "Can you sort yourself out?" he asks. I reassure him I can handle it on my own and he gives a nod, handing me some clean clothes and heading downstairs.

I flop down onto the bed and dry off, then pull on loose jogging bottoms and a vest. I'm barely showing at all, but I'm already thicker round my hips and waist, and I have boobs for once in my life, so most of my regular clothes are proving a challenge to get into and I've resorted to rather unflattering workout gear. Mind you, it's only Gajeel and Lily who see me, and I doubt they care what I look like.

As I'm drying my hair, I feel an odd flutter in my stomach. Oh no, I'd better not be about to throw up again. Wendy's spell should have seen to that. It happens again and my eyes widen.

"Oh! The babies..."

They're moving! I can feel them moving ever so slightly. My hand presses against my stomach, but the movements are weak and I can't feel them all the way through just yet. My face splits into a wide smile, oh, I can't wait to tell the guild! They're going to be so excited. I haven't seen many of them since Gajeel came back. I bet they'll bombard me with questions when I finally feel steady enough on my crutches to pay them a visit.

* * *

When evening falls, we all relax downstairs. As expected, I have my nose in a book. Lily is sat on my shoulder, reading as well, and Gajeel is sat cross-legged on the floor with a guitar, tongue between his teeth as he experiments with chords. He's improving, I must say! The gentle strumming is a welcome accompaniment to my book.

There's a sharp knock at the door. Gajeel looks up with a scowl. "I swear to god, if that's Wendy, come to flap around you again..." he mutters, setting his guitar aside and getting up to answer the persistent knocking.

Worse. It's Porlyusica, the devil woman herself. "Move aside!" I hear her shout and she pushes her way into the house, looking around. Oh, man. I was really hoping she wouldn't turn up, we're all just a bit terrified of her. "Where is she? Where is – ah. Well, don't just lounge about, let me take a look at you!"

Lily hops off my shoulder and scurries off to peer from behind Gajeel's legs. I drop my book over my face and groan. "Good evening to you too, Miss Porlyusica," I say in a muffled voice.

"Yes, yes, enough of that now, I need to look over the extent of your stupidity," she replies with a voice like a whip cracking. Reluctantly, I sit up, and she pulls my leg towards me, starting to unwrap the bandages holding the splint in place. "Hold up, woman!" Gajeel growls. "The hell do you think you're doing? Wendy had this all under control."

"Clearly not, judging by the state of her handiwork," Porlyusica sniffs. "She's got a lot to learn. Levy, you silly girl, you should know better than to go climbing ladders in your condition."

"I'm pregnant, not sick," I reply quietly.

"Oh? Wendy tells me otherwise. Why else would she be casting spells on you to ease your ailments? Well, no matter. Here, this should do the trick." She pulls a bottle out of the folds of her cloak and rubs the contents over my exposed – and very puffy, blue and twisted – ankle. Gajeel observes from the doorway, a thunderous expression on his face. Oh boy, he's majorly pissed. The potion is soothing the discomfort already, and I sigh happily. "Wow, that really does feel better!"

"Wait a moment before saying that," replies the crabby old lady, and she grabs my foot, pulling it straight.

Holyfuckingcrapithurtssobad! I grab the arm of the sofa behind my head and scream; Gajeel lets out a yell of shock and rushes to my side. "What the _hell_ was that for?" he snarls at Porlyusica.

Porlyusica says nothing, just rubs more potion onto my ankle. Breathing heavily, I cling onto Gajeel, pressing my face into his neck. He strokes my hair, glaring daggers at Porlyusica. She finishes applying the potion and then pulls out a load of medical stuff from her bag, starting to put my ankle into a cast. The pain is fading rapidly now, and I look up to see her shaking her head. "Wendy did her best, but had she left it at that, your foot would have been crooked once you healed. You will be able to bear weight on your leg from tomorrow, but carry on using your crutches for a few weeks." I nod, wiping tears from my cheeks. Gajeel still looks like he's going to eat her for supper. "Now that's out of the way, I want to check up on your babies."

"Back the fuck off, woman," Gajeel growls, drawing me closer, "and give me one good reason why I shouldn't rip you limb from limb right now for hurting the mother of my children."

Porlyusica raises a pink eyebrow at him, nonplussed. "I suppose the health of those children means little to you? You humans, so selfish. Now _you_ back off and let me work!"

"It's okay, Gajeel," I murmur, touching his face gently. He looks down at me, eyes still blazing with fury, but he nods and draws back to sit on the floor again, entwining his fingers with mine.

Porlyusica pushes my vest upwards to expose my stomach and runs a hand across it, the other reaching into her bag for an observation lacrima. "Hold still and try not to wriggle around," she orders. "I should be able to see something now..." Her fingers are icy cold and I'm trying so hard not to squirm! She peers into the lacrima as a fuzzy picture builds up. Gajeel leans forward to look at it, frowning. Slowly, the fuzziness develops into two indistinct bean-shaped things in a mass of black and white.

"Oh! Are those the babies?" I ask Porlyusica. She nods, concentrating. Gajeel gives my hand a squeeze, gazing in wonder at the lacrima.

After a few minutes, she speaks. "The babies look healthy enough. You're likely to deliver them early, as it often is with twins, so you will have to be prepared for that. I will give Wendy the training she will need to look after you, as I won't be coming down to see to you all the time! Now, do you want to know what you're having?"

"Yes please," I smile, looking over at Gajeel who nods in agreement.

"Very well...a boy and a girl. Now, I believe I'm done here." She puts the lacrima away and stands, adjusting her cloak.

Gajeel rolls his eyes. "Don't let the door hit your lizard tail on the way out."

"Thank you, Miss Porlyusica."

She sweeps away with a "hmph!" and we all breathe a sigh of relief, Lily emerging from round the back of the sofa. "She is one scary old woman," he remarks, "possibly scarier than Erza, and that's saying something. But anyway, a boy and a girl! Wonderful news!"

"I know!" I'm beaming from ear to ear as I sit up, rubbing my belly. "A brother and sister, Gajeel! Isn't it amazing?" He nods, still holding my hand. I stare down at our interlinked fingers and feel my heart about to burst from my chest with joy. I lift our hands up to press a kiss to the back of his, then hold it against my cheek. "This is real, isn't it? We're going to be parents."

"...Yeah, it's real all right," he replies softly. His hand tugs gently at mine and he gives me a questioning look. Realising what he wants, I slide into his lap, my head against his shoulder as his arms wrap around me. He rests his head atop mine and lets out a deep sigh. "Time for that talk?"

"I think so," I reply. Lily looks between us briefly and then makes himself scarce somewhere. "I'll get straight to the point," I start. "What's going on with you, Gajeel? A few months back we were all over each other and now it's like you don't want me at all."

He doesn't respond immediately. When he does, I can hear regret in his voice. "I do want you," he murmurs.

"Then why has everything changed? We should be together. I'm carrying _your_ children and we love each other. Is it because my body has changed? What has happened to make you distance yourself from me?"

"Nothing, Levy."

"You're lying!" I scowl and shove myself off his lap, folding my arms. "Tell me the truth, Gajeel!"

Gajeel huffs despondently. "I don't deserve you, you know that, right?"

"What do you mean?"

"You know what I mean! I still see it in my nightmares, Levy...the things I did to you. I can never forgive myself for the pain and humiliation I caused you. How can you be so forgiving of me after I hurt you so badly? I'm trying my best to be there for you, but…I don't think I can be who you want me to be, it's…too much to ask of me..."

He puts his head in his hands, and my heart squeezes as he gives a shudder and a sniff. Oh god! I didn't mean to make him cry.

"I'm not proud of my past," Gajeel whispers, "and I can't shed any of it…I've tried so hard for you but in the end, I guess I haven't changed at all since Phantom Lord." He wipes his eyes roughly with the back of his hand. "And…here we are, expecting children that I should be happy about, but instead, I'm just scared to death."

"Oh…Gajeel…" I had no idea he could even _feel_ emotions like this. I hop back into his lap and wrap my arms round his shoulders, pulling him close. "You're already everything I want you to be," I tell him softly, and he gazes at me in wonder, eyes wet and cheeks flushed. "Really, Gajeel…I wouldn't change anything about you, because you've done all the changing yourself. You aren't the person you were back then, in fact, as soon as you saved me from Laxus, you'd changed. And we can all see that; not just me, not just Master, _all_ of us. You're one of us now!" I can feel tears pricking my own eyes as I trace Gajeel's guild mark on his shoulder. "If I can forgive you, why can't you forgive yourself? You say you hurt me back then, but can't you see how much I'm hurting right now from not being able to be with you?"

"Levy…" Gajeel closes his eyes and leans his forehead against mine, moving a hand down to stroke my stomach. Tears glitter on his eyelashes, which I wipe away gently. "I don't want to hurt you ever again…you're everything to me. Tell me what I need to do..."

He looks so lost and vulnerable, I've never seen him like this before. My tears spill over onto my cheeks as I tilt my head upwards, taking the chance I've craved for weeks and pressing our lips together gently, briefly. "Love me…let me love you…be mine…" I whisper. "Be a father to our children…can you do all that, Gajeel? That's all I want."

He nods, a watery smile forming. "I can do that…"

I can practically feel his walls crumbling down, and our lips connect again, him initiating it this time, his hands in my hair and at my back, clinging to me like I might disappear. His kiss is desperate, hungry, like a starved creature, and hot, insistent need flares up deep inside me as I kiss him back. Damn my ankle! If it weren't for this, I know for sure he'd be ripping my clothes off and ravishing me right here on the living room floor. Or would he? He probably doesn't go for the whole "pregnant shrimp" thing. "God, the things you do to me, shrimp," he gasps against my lips. "I'm supposed to be tough, and here you are, melting me into a fucking pile of goo."

I smile, noting his return to my nickname. He's calmed down. "What is it about the babies you're so afraid of?" I ask him, wiping his cheeks dry. "I've no experience with kids either, if that's what you're thinking about."

"…Yeah, just that, really."

"Well, this will be a learning curve for us both, won't it? And we'll do it together."

"Yeah..." His lips seek out mine once more, as if he just can't get enough. Neither can I, to be honest. He's so intoxicating, I could kiss him forever.

"Hey, guess what?"

"Hm?"

"I felt the babies kicking earlier."

"What?! Let me feel!"

We end up lying on the sofa together, cuddling and kissing softly. Gajeel wasn't able to feel any movements, but I think he was just eager for any opportunity to touch my stomach. I can't describe this moment as anything but utter bliss.

* * *

 _So Gajeel is a bit more at ease now. Say, has it ever been confirmed how old he actually is? Everyone else in the guild has pretty definite ages, but he doesn't from what I've seen. I always thought him to be in his early 20s, he certainly looks older than a lot of the teenage guild members._

 _I hope you're enjoying so far. Please tell me your thoughts._

 _Tia_


	5. Chapter 5

_Thanks for reading along so far! This chapter is a little longer than the rest, but I hope it's still a good read._

 _There are_ _antics of a sexual nature in this chapter, be warned!_

* * *

The days are flying by blissfully now Gajeel and I are officially dating. I'm able to walk without using the crutches now, though distances are proving a little more difficult and I still need them if I leave the house. Otherwise, Porlyusica's potion and re-aligning of my foot has worked wonders. Gajeel is back in his own bed, and the cuddles are most welcome! When we sleep, he keeps a hand on my belly as if protecting the babies inside, though he probably just wants to feel them move. Still, it's wonderful, I can't believe we're finally together. The prospect of being a family is so exciting!

It's been two weeks now since my injury and I'm dying to visit the guild, to let them all see in the flesh that I'm okay and catch up with everyone. Gajeel is out on a job today so he's left me in the care of Lily, who is a bit more lax than he is and saw no problem with me heading out to Fairy Tail (Gajeel, for the record, has turned into a mother hen and I can barely lift a finger now without him interfering, he certainly wasn't going to let me go to the guild without a fight until my ankle is healed). He trots beside me as we make our way there, the steady clack of my crutches on the hard ground accompanying us. I'm quite glad for them actually, and not just because of my ankle – I've had super horrible back and pelvic pain recently, probably due to the pregnancy, so the support is a big help. I'm going to be bombarding Bisca with questions the minute I see her.

"Holding up okay, Levy?" Lily asks me.

"Yup! Just glad to be up and about now."

The Exceed chuckles. "I imagine you've been rather bored, holed up with no work to do. And you must have read your books a thousand times each."

"Yeah, and Gajeel flapping around me hasn't helped! Thanks for convincing him to go on that job, Lily."

"You're welcome. He was starting to annoy me too. You're pregnant, not ill, and you should be trying to resume your normal activities when you feel up to it."

"See, at least _you_ have sense. It's nice though, in a way. It shows he cares."

"Oh, that he does," Lily agrees. "You've really done a number on him, Levy. His love for you is unlike any other."

I blush and giggle in response. It's true, he's a changed man! He's being so sweet and loving right now, I feel spoiled rotten. The mother hen act has to go though, seriously. I'm a Fairy Tail wizard, I think I can handle a walk to the guild and a bout of SPD.

The guild hall comes into view now, and I still can't get over how magnificent it is, and how it was just _given_ to us by the Mayor after the Grand Magic Games. I didn't participate, but it was the best gift they could have given those who did. I can just about see a blonde, curvy figure outside the hall that must be Lucy, and a flash of red, pink and blue that will be Natsu and Happy. The lovebirds totally need to realise they have a thing for each other sometime soon! Seeing them utterly fail at romance is both hilarious and uncomfortable. There's a yell, and Happy drops to the floor; it looks like they're training. "Damn it, Natsu!" Lucy shouts. "You're too hard on him!"

"Nah, he can take it! You okay, Happy?"

"A-Aye, sir..." Happy gets to his feet and brushes himself down, looking around a moment before spotting me. "Oh hey! Lily and Levy!"

"Levy!" Lucy rushes down the hill to meet us, looking like she might throw herself at me in joy. Luckily for my ankle, she stops just short of that. "How _are_ you? I've missed you! And my god, your belly! Look at your bump!"

"Hi, Lu," I giggle, inching myself away from her groping hands. Lily sniggers and walks away to talk to Happy while Natsu lingers over Lucy's shoulder, staring incredulously at my bump. "I'm fine, babies are doing well too. How are things here?"

Natsu grins. "Same as ever. Jet and Droy have been a bit depressed, they seriously need you to go cheer them up before they pass it onto everyone else." He frowns, then gives a sniff and laughs. "You smell like Gajeel now, kinda. Wonder if it's a Dragon Slayer thing, like a marking. You're definitely his now, that's for sure."

"Um...is that a good thing?"

"Put it this way, no other Slayer is ever going to touch you now, they'll know you're taken a mile off. Surprised Wendy hasn't mentioned it so far."

"Maybe Wendy likes minding her own business, unlike you!" Lucy smacks Natsu round the back of his head, earning a startled yelp. "Anyway, let's get you inside! How's your ankle doing?"

"Pretty much healed now," I tell her as we make our way towards the guild. "I reckon I'll be off the crutches in a few more days. Porlyusica really helped."

Lucy lowers her voice to a hushed tone. "Wendy was so upset that she hadn't done a good job of patching you up. She cried for days whenever anyone mentioned you, Erza even gave her cake to cheer her up, and you know how hard it is to part Erza from cake!"

"Wow, that _is_ impressive. She did her best though, and no harm done." Natsu pushes the guild doors open and stands aside to let us in first. At the sight of me, the guild erupts into joyful conversation as they gather round, asking questions, admiring my belly, full of smiles. It's so lovely, seeing how much my companions care for me. For now though, I only have eyes for Jet and Droy, who are hovering behind the crowd apprehensively. As I put my crutches aside and limp towards them, the throng parts, and I throw my arms around them both, hugging tight. "Hi, guys!"

"Levy!" they sob, clutching me. "We were so worried about you!" The guild laughs a collective laugh at their overreacting, but I appreciate their tears all the same, they love me and I love them. Maybe not in the same way, but that doesn't matter right now, I just want to make my guys happy. "I'm okay," I tell them. "I haven't forgotten about you, don't worry. We're going to get straight back to work as soon as my ankle is better!"

Lucy utters a gasp. "Levy, surely Gajeel won't let you!"

I toss my hair back and roll my eyes. "He's my boyfriend, not my father. I'm a Fairy Tail wizard and I'm going to carry on working through this pregnancy till I'm ready to pop."

"Easy jobs though, right?" Jet asks.

"Yeah," Droy agrees, "otherwise, if you get hurt, Gajeel will turn us into fish food!"

"We'll see," I giggle.

Mira sweeps through with her usual big white smile. "Levy, you look positively radiant! Can we do anything for you?"

"I'd love to speak to Bisca if she's around."

"Sure." Mira looks towards Warren, who gives a nod and puts two fingers to his temple. After a minute or so, he locates Bisca, who tells him she's on her way over currently. Jet and Droy help me onto a bench and Mira brings me a hot drink. "You and those babies need anything else, you let me know, okay?" She gives a wink and departs, leaving me to catch up with my closest comrades.

"It's good to have you back," Droy grins, ruffling my hair. "How are you feeling? Is Gajeel treating you alright?"

"Did you say he's your boyfriend?" Jet asks.

"Well...yeah. I'm kinda carrying his kids."

"Well, you could just have –"

"Jet!" I cry in exasperation. His face falls and suddenly I feel awful. "Sorry. Um, well, we weren't together at first, but we are now. He's looking after me well, and I'll be able to go back home soon, I think."

But that gets me thinking. Do I _want_ to go home? This last week or so has been utterly blissful and I love being with Gajeel and Lily. Plus, we're going to be parents in just a few months, and we should be together as a family. I guess at some point soon, we'll have to think about us living together permanently. Something to approach tonight, maybe, when he returns from his job.

Jet and Droy still look a bit apprehensive though, despite my reassurances. "You'd tell us if anything went wrong though, right?" Droy asks me. "You know how much we care for you, Levy."

"I know, guys. Thank you...he's great though, honestly. You don't need to worry about me." I rest a hand on my belly, feeling the babies wriggling around. Jet and Droy lean forward, eyes wide. "Do you want to feel, guys?"

And so for the next few minutes, I'm sat there while their hands wander over me, smiling at their giggles and pleased exclamations. I'm so grateful for these two. They didn't warm to Gajeel as quickly as I did, but they accepted him into the guild soon after they saw how much I wanted them to forgive him for his actions. The whole guild sees him as a brother now, and they'll be amazing when it comes to helping us raise the twins. What is it they say? "It takes a village to raise a child?" Fairy Tail is my village and they're definitely going to be our strength in this.

And speaking of children, Bisca makes her appearance then with Alzack, little Asuka trotting along between them, swinging on their hands. They're the perfect little family, and Bisca looks so perfect and made up; I wonder if she felt grotty and sickly throughout her pregnancy the same way I do. I'm sat here right now in sweatpants and a loose jumper with my hair loose and bags under my eyes, painting a very attractive picture, I assure you. "Levy, sweetie!" she calls, sweeping over to give me a hug. "Feeling okay now?"

"Eh, so-so," I reply, face muffled in her breasts. Alzack gives a laugh and ruffles my hair – why do people insist on doing that? – while Asuka bounds off to clamber all over Natsu like a monkey. "I wanted to ask you some pregnancy stuff, if that's alright," I say when she releases me.

"Sure! You want to talk in private?"

"Yeah, why not." I stand up and wave to Jet and Droy, who smile and wave back. Bisca takes my hand to steady me and kisses Al's cheek as she leads me off to a quieter room within the guild. Nevertheless, I just know Mira will be listening in somewhere! She's terrible, she has ears everywhere. "So," Bisca starts as she settles me down, "I still can't believe it, Levy. Twins! And with Gajeel, no less." She sits down opposite me, twitching her tiny skirt downwards a little. "Well, no, actually. I kind of expected they'd be his the minute we found out you were expecting."

"Really?" My mouth is slightly open in surprise.

"Yeah! You two have always been close, and ridiculously oblivious to each other's feelings. You've plainly had the hots for each other for ages, am I right?" I blush and she laughs. "Got you there, didn't I? He's a good guy though, Levy. He treats you well. How does he feel about the pregnancy?"

"He's much more relaxed now. He was quite scared at first but I think he's calmed down." I cast my mind back to our talk, his shuddering, his tears. It's so odd that he even _has_ those kinds of emotions. "How was your pregnancy, Bisca?" I ask her. "I wasn't here, obviously, so I've no idea what you went through."

My eyes linger on her perfectly flat stomach and lack of stretch marks. I've got them already on my thighs and it's absolutely gross, I hate them. I spent all evening crying when they appeared and Gajeel had to buy me ice cream to settle me. She smirks when she sees where I'm looking. "Oh, this didn't spring back all by itself, doll. Lotions and potions did it, I looked like an empty potato sack once Asuka arrived. I'll point you in the direction of a good apothecary later. As for the pregnancy, well, I had an easy time, I guess. Quite a bit of sickness at first, but I drank a lot of ginger tea, it really helps."

"Did you crave anything? I just want to eat chocolate all the time."

"I didn't, actually! Well, I didn't crave food, anyway." She winks at me and I gasp. "Yep, all the hormones can make you a little, er, _amorous."_

"And Al was okay with that?"

"Okay with it? Doll, he was all over it like a starving dog!" She grins at the expression on my face. "He said seeing me carry his child was so sexy he just couldn't keep his hands off me!"

"Oh, wow," I murmur, twisting my hair round my fingers. "Gajeel hasn't touched me at all since we found out. He probably thinks he'll hurt me or the babies."

"You two are an item now, yeah?"

"Mm."

"I reckon he'll come round. You're a cute little thing, you'll work something out."

"Would it be uncomfortable?"

"Maybe. We had to find different positions as I got bigger, but that was fine."

I wonder how I'd feel about that, us being intimately entwined with my massive belly in the way. It's already in the way and I'm still not showing all that much. Still...it might be something to surprise him with. "Bisca...could you...teach me a few things?"

"I reckon I could do that. Be sure to tell me if they work, yeah? I promise I won't blab, unlike some here!"

I think of Mira, almost certainly listening in, and laugh inwardly.

* * *

Later on, I'm tucked up in bed with a hot chocolate, a bar of chocolate and a stack of books. It's really late and Gajeel hasn't returned yet, but he sent a message ahead to Mira that he was on his way back to Magnolia. Lily has long since fallen asleep at my feet, but I'm still awake, waiting.

Finally, I hear the door open downstairs and the dull thud of heavy footsteps, followed by a sigh. Oh, he's home. I'm so glad! I've hardly seen him at all today and it's been lonely without him. The last week or so, we've been practically joined at the hip, and being without him was strange. I feel myself smiling like an idiot as I settle back down, pushing a chunk of chocolate into my mouth. He comes upstairs and pops his head round the door, giving me a gentle smile. "How you holding up, shrimp?"

"I missed you," I reply softly.

"Heh. I'm gonna take a shower, okay?" He slumps off again, his weariness evident. He's probably too tired to have a proper discussion about anything right now. The water starts running in the next room, the pitter-patter oddly soothing. Lily gives a grunt and turns onto his back, snoring softly, and I giggle, making the babies jump and wriggle in response. They've been really active today! It feels so peculiar, these two tiny humans growing inside me, changing everything about me. But I love it. I'm so excited to be a mother.

A few minutes later, Gajeel trails in, towelling off his hair, another wrapped loosely around his hips, showing off his gorgeous physique. I can't help but stare at what is, to me, utter perfection. His skin glistens with water and the towel sits dangerously low, enhancing the sharp lines of his hip bones. I can't help my tongue poking out to lick my lips, suddenly feeling a tad warm. He chuckles when he catches me staring. "Don't get any ideas," he chides.

I pout at him. "Well, Lily's in here anyway."

"So he is." Gajeel sits on the edge of the bed and pulls his towel off so he can put a pair of boxers on, but his momentarily naked form is hidden from my view, disappointingly. He slides into bed and wraps his arms around me, pressing a kiss to my lips. "You taste sweet," he murmurs as he pulls away. I grin, reaching for my hot chocolate and drinking deeply. He raises an eyebrow at me. "You and your chocolate, shrimp. You'll have no teeth left by the time the twins arrive."

"I'll brush them," I reply, wiping my mouth. "How did your job go?"

"Well enough." He settles down into the bed, letting a hand wander over my belly gently. "Sorry I took so long."

"It's fine, Gajeel. I can't expect you to stay with me all the time."

"Mmhm." His eyes slide closed and he stifles a yawn. I kiss his cheek and haul my fat, clumsy self out of bed, heading for the bathroom to wash my face and brush my teeth. By the time I return, Gajeel is half asleep, an arm thrown over the space where I lay. He murmurs in protest when I lift it up so I can get back in, but he pulls me tight to him, my back to his chest, and nuzzles my neck, trailing kisses up to my jaw. I wriggle against him to get comfortable, smiling. Right now, in his arms, basking in his love, it's all I need, all I want.

When I wake, it's approaching dawn. Gajeel would normally be up and about by now, but he's out for the count, worn out from his job, I'd assume. Lily will have gone out already to train, so it's just us two and the somersaulting babies in my belly. Gajeel's hand tightens momentarily over the movements, though he still hasn't been able to feel anything much yet, then he exhales heavily and turns onto his back. With a bit of difficulty, I twist round to take a good look at the beautiful man beside me.

I love the way his hair spills out onto the pillows beneath his head, I love his soft, peaceful face as he sleeps, god, I just love everything about him. I reach out a hand to trail it absently down his chest, feeling the warmth of his skin beneath my fingers. He doesn't stir, not even when I drift lower to his toned stomach and shapely hips. A sudden naughty urge comes over me, and I can't help but smirk. Some of Bisca's "advice" still sits fresh in my mind, and thinking it over last night made me a little bit needy, let's just say, and eager to experiment. During the weeks Gajeel and I spent going at it, we never actually did more than straight sex with some hands-on touching, no mouths on private parts or anything like that. I guess we were just so damn horny we couldn't think of anything else but to fuck. But I want more, and being pregnant isn't going to stop me.

Gajeel remains sound asleep as I slip my hand lower, beneath the waistband of his boxers, stroking his semi-hard length. It gives a deep pulse in my hand and I have to fight back a laugh. Slowly, I slide under the covers and pull his underwear down, taking him in hand again. Well, Levy, it's now or never! Time to get to work. I press a teasing kiss to the underside of Gajeel's shaft, pausing when I feel him shift, but he doesn't wake. The whole thing throbs again, almost urging me to continue. My tongue slips out to circle the head briefly before I take him into my mouth, wrapping a hand round the base to pump and stroke what I can't take in. A soft gasp emits from above me, though I can't tell if he's awake or not with the covers over my head. Steadily, I begin to bob my head back and forth, tracing the smooth flesh with my tongue and enjoying the feel of him against my lips. My heart is hammering wildly, but I love the thrill.

"Ah...Levy...what...?"

Damn, he wakes up fast. The covers are yanked off and Gajeel is staring down at me with half-open eyes and flushed cheeks. I flash him my cutest expression, or as cute as I can manage with his junk in my mouth. "The hell are you doing?" he growls.

I release him and wipe my mouth. "What does it look like I'm doing? I'm giving you a good time."

"You could have woke me up first." I'm surprised to hear him laugh softly. "Dammit, shrimp, you sure know how to surprise a guy." Strong hands reach down, and he pulls me up to his chest, making me yelp, startled. His mouth attacks mine with hungry ferocity and I can't stop the pleased moan that comes out of my throat. His hands leave my shoulders to grip my waist as he pulls back. "What made you want to do this?" he asks, lowering his lips to my neck. I sigh as he flutters kisses down to my collarbone and up again to nibble at my ear.

"I just...wanted to please you."

"You do that already."

"And I was horny?"

Gajeel chuckles against my neck. "I still need some convincing that it's alright for us to fuck, but...well, mouths certainly aren't off-limits..." He kisses me again and smirks. "As you were."

Oh god, he wants me to carry on! I didn't expect this. But I had best finish what I started. Gajeel puts an arm behind his head, watching me intently as I slide down his body and take him in hand once more, maintaining eye contact with him. He's the first to break it, closing his eyes and leaning his head back when I engulf him in my mouth. "Mm...oh, fuck, that's good..." he groans, tangling his free hand in my hair.

Slowly, I work him into a pleasured frenzy, feeling his muscles tensing and shuddering, hearing the moans and profanities fall from his lips. I move faster, sucking harder, urging him towards release. I'm rewarded with a long, deep growl as his grip on my hair tightens and his seed flows down my throat in a series of spurts. It's warm, and tastes peculiar, but not all that bad. Gajeel's whole body relaxes and I slowly release him, licking whatever remains from him. He shudders at that, and I chuckle, realising he must be sensitive. I dry my lips on the back of my hand and pull up to settle beside him; he wraps an arm round my waist to tug me closer, making soft noises of satisfaction. "Damn, Levy..." he murmurs, "where did you learn to do that?"

"Um...womanly intuition?"

He laughs. "Whatever. That was fucking amazing." His chest is heaving, a thin sheen of sweat covering his brow. I'm so pleased! He really did enjoy it. "You're one sexy minx, you know that?"

"No, I'm not. Look at me!" I gesture to my rounding stomach and stretched thighs. "With all this going on, I'm just –"

Gajeel cuts me off suddenly, pushing me onto my back. He hovers over me, a lustful glow in his eyes. "You are the most beautiful woman in the world," he growls, "and I will never tell you otherwise. Nor will I let anyone else tell you otherwise. You're my girl and you're carrying my kids, and there ain't much sexier than that." I gasp as he leans down, biting at my neck, grinding his hips against mine. Oh, he makes me feel like my whole body is aflame. The way he touches me, gentle yet possessive, his lips, teeth and tongue working their magic...I love it. I love _him._ When I tell him, he pulls back with an amused smirk to kiss my lips. "I know, sweetheart. I love you too."

Sweetheart! What happened to "shrimp"? But I love it! A pet name that doesn't take the piss out of my height. "Now, if it's all the same with you," Gajeel chuckles, "it's still early and I'm knackered, so I want some more sleep."

"Sure, Gajeel. Though I hope you didn't mind me waking you."

"Hey, you can wake me for blowjobs whenever you like," he winks. I laugh and settle back into the bed with him in our usual position, me being the little spoon. He strokes my belly lovingly and I lean back into him, feeling his warm breath on the back of my neck. "Levy...are the babies moving?" he asks quietly.

"Yeah, why?"

"I think I can feel them...just about." I can feel him smiling against my skin. "How do you deal with it? They must kick about a lot."

"I dunno, I just sort of forget about it," I shrug. "It'll get worse as they get bigger."

"You let me know when it happens, and I'll do whatever I can to make you comfortable."

"Aw, Gajeel, you're so sweet."

"Just for you."

We lie there for a while, silent and content. Gajeel's hand continues to stroke my belly slowly. After a while I ask softly, "Are you asleep?"

"...Nah. It's too bright now," he replies in a muffled voice, his head pressed into my shoulder blade.

"Gajeel...I've been thinking..." I turn round a little awkwardly, so I can face him. His eyes are closed, but I know he's listening. "The babies will be here before we know it, and we shouldn't raise them from separate houses...if you see where I'm going with this."

He cracks an eye open, interest piqued. "Hm? You wanna move in or something?"

"Well, my room at Fairy Hills is tiny, and Lily is relegated to the couch while I'm here. It's too small for us three, let alone with twins on the way too."

"Yeah...I see your point." Gajeel nods and closes his eye again. "Alright. I'll find us a bigger place. I'm only in this one 'cos it's cheap anyway."

"You're not attached to it at all?'

"Nah, it's just a house." I kiss his forehead gratefully and he gives me a tired smile. "Look at us, making all these grown-up plans. It's pretty exciting, huh?"

"I wouldn't want to make these plans with anyone but you."

* * *

 _Fun fact - I didn't crave anything myself during pregnancy, but I did eat an unhealthy amount of chocolate. I could eat a 100g bar in under half an hour on my break at work, I was terrible xD I was more fortunate than Levy in terms of the stretch marks - I had them on my chest by 20 weeks, then my thighs got them, then my hips, calves, bum and just when I thought I'd escaped having them on my belly, they popped up at 37 weeks. The majority of them have faded now, but my thighs got the worst of it and they'll never look the way they did again. Ah well. That's having babies for you._

 _hope you enjoyed this chapter! More to come soon._

 _Tia_


	6. Chapter 6

_Hi everyone! I'm doing my best to keep writing, but at the moment I've also got college assignments flying at me left, right and centre, plus I have university interviews to deal with too, so it's been hectic to say the least. Aaaaanyway, here's chapter 6, where there is some more delicious smut for you to skip by if you don't do that sort of thing._

* * *

And that's that! I went back to Fairy Hills for a while, (and it was absolute hell, what with missing Gajeel and being pestered constantly by the girls to let them feel my bump and everything in between), but after that, Lily dropped off a key for me one morning and gave me some directions over breakfast at the guild hall.

Gajeel had rented out a spacious two-bedroom house a few minutes walk away from the hall, with a little shed-like building at the bottom of the back garden, which Lily had converted into a bedroom of sorts for himself. "Now you two are in a relationship, I feel we will all need some, uh, _private_ time," he had explained, somehow keeping a straight face, when I had asked why on the way to see the house.

He's right, I suppose. He practically got run out of the old house again the other day, after Gajeel attacked me when I was reaching up to grab something from the kitchen cupboard. The poor Exceed walked in to find me clinging to the counter for dear life, Gajeel's hands busy underneath my top and sliding into my pants. Sorry, Lily!

God, I was so embarrassed. Lily had just given a little cough, pulled a carton of kiwi juice from the fridge, and made his exit sharpish. We ended up finishing soon after anyway, since we discovered my milk-making capabilities are in good working order and Gajeel got an unexpected mouthful of it, leaving me helpless with laughter on the floor and him with a mixture of curiosity and mild disgust on his face.

Later on, in bed, his skillful fingers and tongue nearly had me screaming the roof down and I swear I ripped a chunk of his hair out from clutching at it so tightly, but it was the first time he'd used his mouth on me, you know, down there, and it was wonderful. Yep, we're back in the swing of things now, mostly. We still haven't had sex since the pregnancy bombshell. But I'm pretty happy with what we have right now.

At Fairy Tail, our "moving in" party is in full swing, the usual merriment increased tenfold and music blaring. Poor Mira is run off her feet trying to keep the place in order, but she looks like she's having fun. Even old Master Makarov is enjoying himself, cheering and clanking tankards with everyone before Cana drags him away for a drinking contest. As usual, Gray and Natsu are fighting while long-suffering Juvia and Lucy try desperately to keep them under control. Evergreen and Elfman are completely oblivious to the world as they make out in a corner with Lisanna and the rest of the Thunder Legion looking on incredulously.

And me? On the dance floor with Loke, who's decided to pop by to see what all the fuss is about. My ankle is completely better now and it's brilliant to be up and about again, though my back still isn't doing me any favours. Thanks, twins!

"You look wonderful tonight, my dear Levy," Loke smiles down at me. I blush and bat his hands away, giggling. He's such a lecherous perv, but a lovable one at that. He spins me away and tugs me back so I collide with his chest rather roughly. "Sorry," he chuckles. "I keep forgetting about your little _protrusion."_

"Protrusion!" I laugh.

"How far along are you now?"

"Six months, give or take a week or two." Peering over Loke's shoulder, I spot Gajeel seated by the bar with Lily, Macao and Wakaba, positively glaring daggers over the top of his tankard at the seductive Spirit dancing with me. "Hey, Loke, you might wanna watch where your hands are wandering," I grin, slapping one away from my backside, "Gajeel looks ready to rip your head off."

"He can try," he replies, but I know he's only joking. He kisses my hand and inclines his head to me. "You're a lucky woman, Levy. He treats you like a princess and you deserve nothing less. I will drink to the health of your babies tonight." Winking, he departs, presumably to harass Lucy. I watch him go with a small smile. We've all missed him, so I'm glad he decided to drop by for a while. Gajeel is still watching me, so I wander over, waving. He gives a small grunt when I perch myself on his lap and cuddle into his chest. "Aw, is big tough Gajeel all jealous?" I tease.

He growls, wrapping an arm round me securely. "Loke's such an ass. He touches you again and he'll wish he never joined this guild." I can't help but smile. I never took Gajeel for someone who would partake in public displays of affection, but he's forever touching me, kissing me, pulling me into his lap, and threatening any man who looks at me. Okay, that last bit can get tiring, but the raw passion that emanates from him is amazing. He really wants this, he wants _us,_ and he isn't afraid to show it. Lowering his voice, aware of Macao and Wakaba watching us, he brings his lips to my ear and murmurs, "I hope you aren't going to tease me all night, shrimp. I only have so much restraint and you're making it very difficult for me."

"I don't mean to!" I reply, noticing his eyes meandering downwards over my chest. I figured I might as well make the most of my new bigger boobs, so I dressed up for the party in a figure-hugging, floor-length and rather low-cut dress that accentuates my growing bump. I've been dancing for most of the time with the other guild members, aware of Gajeel keeping a close eye on me, but I didn't think it would have this much of an effect on him. In fact, I can feel him growing firmer beneath my thighs. "I don't think we can get away with sneaking out, so you'd better calm yourself, mister!"

"I can't, not when you look as amazing as you do." He presses his lips to mine hungrily, to cheers and catcalls from the guild members. Oh, he's going to make me melt, scrap that, I'm already melting as I wrap my arms round his shoulders and return the kiss with vigour. I can taste ale on his tongue and smell the wonderful metallic aura that he gives off; it's all him and I love it. When we break apart, we rest our heads together and entwine our hands, oblivious to the din around us. "I don't envy Mira having to clean up after all of us tonight," I giggle.

"Don't know how she deals with us," he replies with a smirk.

"Get a room!" Natsu yells, throwing a chair in our general direction. Gajeel immediately tips me off his lap and pushes me behind him, raising an arm and turning it into an iron bar to slam the chair away. "Now you've fucking done it, Salamander!" he growls, rounding on the grinning fire Dragon Slayer, but I stop him with a hand on his shoulder. "Hey, I got this," I whisper in his ear, and he chuckles, nodding.

"Solid Script: Iron!"

Natsu is promptly smacked round the head with my spell, and he crumples, dazed, to the floor amidst raucous laughter. "I think you're getting over-excited, Natsu," I tell him sweetly. His face is an absolute picture! "Maybe you should lie down and rest." See, I don't always need protecting!

"That's my girl," Gajeel grins, kissing my neck. Moving his lips upwards, he whispers in my ear, "Upstairs. Meet me in ten minutes. Let's take flame brain's advice for once."

Oh! I can feel my face heating up considerably and bury it in my hands. He laughs softly and kisses my cheek before departing. I can only imagine – rather vividly, mind – what he wants, and it probably involves our clothes on the floor, amongst other things.

* * *

"Levy!" Lucy comes running over, looking gorgeous as always. Her hair is bouncing loose around her shoulders and she's dressed in a fancy outfit that looks to be something Virgo brought from the Spirit World. "That was fantastic, Levy!" she trills, grabbing my hands. "Natsu's pride will be stinging for a while."

"Heh. Getting taken out by a small pregnant lady must be embarrassing."

"You can blame it on the hormones." She perches on Gajeel's abandoned bar stool and takes a swig of the ale he left behind. "So, are you excited to move in with Gajeel? Are you all set?"

"I think so. Erza helped move all my stuff over today, so it's just a case of putting everything away."

"Ooh, you'll be getting a nursery put together soon!"

"Oh man. I hadn't even thought of that."

"You're such a klutz, Levy." Lucy giggles as she feels my stomach. "Aw, they're moving. You have names yet?"

"Um, no. We haven't thought that far ahead yet."

"You only have a few more months before they arrive! Best start thinking soon."

Lucy engages me in excitable conversation for a while till I remember Gajeel wanted me upstairs, so I make my excuses and hurry off. I just _know_ Mira's eyes are going to be following me the whole time. I quickly arrive on the upper level of the guild and cast an eye about, searching for Gajeel. Oh, so that's how it is, is it? Hide and seek, like last time? I smirk and begin my search, pushing doors open and peering round each of them. If I were a Dragon Slayer I'd have him sniffed out in an instant.

Upon opening the fifth door, a hand shoots out and yanks me inside. "Whoa, hey!" I splutter as I collide with Gajeel's rock-hard chest. He chuckles, letting his hands wander down my back and sides to squeeze my behind. "Sorry, shrimp. You alright?"

"Yeah." I look up at him and smile, reaching my foot behind me to nudge the door closed. He looks so handsome tonight, having foregone his usual attire for white shirt, black waistcoat and black trousers, though he couldn't resist throwing on a bandana as well, letting his hair fall messily in front of his face. Just the way I like it. "So…why are we up here?" I ask quietly, running a finger down his chest. "We're missing our own party downstairs."

"Yeah, well..." I utter a soft groan as he litters gentle bites all over my neck, "seeing you dressed up like this...and beating Natsu down...fuck, you're just so hot..." He nips my collarbone and traces his tongue over the small mark. "I doubt they'll miss us for a few minutes." My eyes travel over to the bed behind us and I realise we're in one of the spare rooms reserved for new, ill or passed out drunk guild members. Gajeel begins to tug me towards the bed, hunger evident in his gaze, and we fall down on it with me straddling his lap. Our lips crush together and our hands wander, his pulling my dress up to my waist, mine busy unbuttoning his waistcoat and shirt. We grind against each other, gasping and panting. My belly is getting in the way somewhat, but I don't care, I just want him to touch me, and he does, sliding his hands to the tops of my thighs and rubbing between them, making me cry out. I've been so sensitive during this pregnancy and it's amazing. He knows just where to touch to drive me crazy.

"Levy..." he whispers against my lips. I yank at his belt, pulling it open and fumbling with the button on his trousers before slipping inside. I can feel him throbbing hot and needy beneath my grasp, and he utters a groan as I stroke him teasingly. Being this close to him is sending my senses into overdrive, god, I want him. I want to feel him inside me again, it's been too long. Gajeel breaks away and traces my lips with a finger. "How about putting that talented mouth of yours to good use, shrimp?"

I giggle in response. "Yes, sir!"

He helps me stand and I kneel in front of him, pulling his trousers down further along with his boxers. This all feels very naughty! Anyone could walk in right now! But the way Gajeel is looking at me right now, with blazing lust in his eyes, nothing could make me stop now. My mouth closes around the head of his shaft and he groans, gripping the bedsheets tightly."Ah, Levy...fuck, yes..."

His hips rock in time with my movements, his eyes squeezed shut as he bites his lip. I love being able to pleasure Gajeel like this, see him fall apart beneath me. He's so worked up from us rubbing against each other that it doesn't take long for him to come, his hands moving to grip my hair as he spills into my mouth with a soft cry. I swallow him down and pull back, wiping my lips, to observe the look of bliss on his face that quickly reverts to lust when I come back up to straddle him.

I rock my hips against his again and he shudders, clinging to my waist. "Oh, holy fuck, Levy!" he gasps. He must be super sensitive right now, but it only spurs me on further. Stopping for a moment, I push my underwear to the side before moving again, bringing our intimate areas together fully, and I can't help but moan at the feel of his shaft sliding between my wet lower lips. Gajeel's eyes are wide and his breathing heavy as he thrusts upwards, bringing me closer to my own release. "G-Gajeel!" I cry out. "I...I'm gonna..." I can't even finish what I'm saying as he gives a particularly rough thrust, sending spasms through my entire body.

"Come for me," he murmurs, moving in to kiss and nibble my neck. I can't hold back anymore and I throw my head back with a loud moan, feeling my climax burst forth, wracking my body with shuddering pleasure. Gajeel groans against my neck, slowing his movements gradually before coming to a halt. "Wow," he whispers. "You're amazing, Levy."

I just give him a weary smile and drop forward to rest my head on his shoulder. I can feel he's come back to life down there, but before I can do anything else, the door handle turns with a creak and I squeal, falling backwards in shock. Gajeel catches me and scowls at the door as it opens a tad.

"Hey, you two," Mira's voice comes floating in. "Um, if you're done...we've got something for you downstairs."

Hushed voices whisper from behind her. "Natsu, you owe me 10,000 jewel!"

"Aw, come on, Happy!"

"Hey, baby! Let me in on this!"

"Oh, my children…"

"A real man!"

"Get away from the door, everyone! Now!" Mira's voice cracks like a whip and there's a sudden scurry of feet descending the stairs. Oh man...was everyone listening in? I swear this guild is full of perverts.

Gajeel is laughing as he stands me up and we arrange our clothing back into reasonable attire. "Looks like they missed us after all," he grins.

"Gajeel, I think the whole guild could hear us!"

He just flashes me a smirk as he leaves the room, close behind Mira. He's loving it! Scowling, I neaten my hair and smooth my dress down over my bump. All I can hope for is that they're all too drunk to remember this in the morning. He's already gone downstairs by the time I emerge; I can feel my face burning bright red as I enter the main hall again, all eyes are on me with my flushed cheeks and pregnant bump, and Gajeel grinning like the cat who got the cream.

Mira claps her hands together as if nothing had happened and chirps, "Okay! We all bought the happy couple presents to celebrate your moving in together. Think of them as commemorating the pregnancy as well. We're all so happy for you, you deserve this." Tears are sparkling in her eyes as she smiles widely at us. Gajeel pats her head a little awkwardly.

"A toast!" Master Makarov shouts, raising his goblet. "To Gajeel and Levy! May their days be long and happy." Everyone raises a drink to us, even little Asuka with her glass of lemonade. Bisca is giving me a knowing, triumphant smile as she looks in my direction. I bury my face in Gajeel's chest, suddenly rather overcome, and he wraps an arm round my waist, chuckling.

The gift giving begins from the pile on the bar. Mostly it's bits and pieces for the new house, you know, picture frames and bedding and toasters and all that, but we got personal things from our closer guild mates too. Naturally, Cana gave Gajeel a ton of booze, which they both opened and started drinking straight away, and Gray gave him a small enchanted ice sculpture in the shape of a dragon. Juvia presented him with a bandana she had woven herself, which he swapped for the one he was wearing before giving her a rough hug and a peck on the cheek. Having known him longer than the rest of us, I think she's the only girl I could stand to see Gajeel be close to, and let's be honest, she'll only ever have the hots for Gray no matter what.

Jet and Droy had banded together to give me a huge stack of new books, Lucy a beautiful dress and cloak from the Spirit World, Natsu and Happy a bundle of baby clothes (that coincidentally were covered in fish patterns). Lily presented us both with tickets for a relaxing holiday at a spa resort, and, perhaps most significant of all, Master Makarov gave us his blessing. Even Gajeel was in tears by the end of his poignant speech about loving his children and Juvia had to dab his face with a handkerchief.

Eventually, there's just one gift left, and it's tiny, a small black box that would fit in the palm of my hand. "I reckon this is yours, Levy!" Mira beams as she holds it out to me.

"Oh!" I exclaim, taking it from her. "Who is it from?"

"Open it and find out!"

I do so slowly. The chattering guild falls quiet as I gasp, staring into the box with wide eyes. A single ring lies within a deep red cushion; silver, with an intricate weave of metal enclosing a blue stone at its centre. Lisanna gives a little scream. "Levy! It's so beautiful!"

"Wow..." I murmur, picking the ring out and turning it this way and that. An inscription on the inside catches my eye, and I peer at it intently.

 _By my side, always._

Oh! Is this...!

It can't be.

Can it?

Slowly, I raise my head to look straight at Gajeel, where he stands across the room with Juvia and Cana. He gazes back, looking impassive to anyone who doesn't know his nervous twitches well enough, and I can see he's blinking a lot more than normal over the top of his tankard. "Gajeel..." I whisper, placing the ring back, "is this from you?" He nods slowly in response. "What does this mean?"

"Guess," he says quietly.

My heart just about stops and jumps into my mouth. The guild stare at the scene before them, looking like they hardly dare breathe. Gajeel gives his tankard to Cana and crosses the hall towards me. With a shaking hand, he plucks the box from my grip and rests his brow against mine. "I've been thinking..." he murmurs, "and more than ever now, I don't want to let you go. I need you with me, Levy. I don't know what I'd do without you. We haven't been together long, but I already know that you're the one I want to spend the rest of my life with. So…" Taking my hands with his free one, he drops down on one knee, to gasps and shrieks from the girls around us, and my eyes instantly fill with tears as the question I know he's going to ask hits me full force. "Levy McGarden, mother of my children, captor of my heart...will you marry me?"

A squeak comes out of my throat, but not much else. Tears spill over onto my cheeks, rendering me speechless for a few moments as I'm unable to do anything other than sob. Eventually, I manage a nod, and the resulting smile on his face is breath-taking. "Yes," I whisper. "A thousand times yes." He slides the ring onto my left hand and stands to draw me into a deep, loving kiss as cheers erupt all around us.

Mira bursts into tears and hugs us both, wailing that she was so happy everything went to plan. I should have known she would have a hand in it all! I look into Gajeel's ruby red eyes and ask, "Did you plan this?"

"Kinda," he admits, chuckling. "I needed to get you out of the room while Mira and Lucy got everything ready."

"Wait, _Lucy?"_

My head whips round just in time for Lucy's ample bosom to hit me in the face as she launches herself at me for a hug."Oh my god, Levy, you're getting married!" she squeals. "I'm so happy! We have to start planning! Before the babies come or after?"

"What?"

"Your wedding day, dummy! Before or after the babies?"

"Um..." I look up at Gajeel, who grins back at me. I don't think I've ever seen him this happy. "What do you think?"

He strokes my hair, lips pursed. "Sooner rather than later," he says after a few moments. "I don't think I could wait long."

He's right, it should be soon. This is a big day that we could all do without having to deal with crying babies. So I nod and kiss his cheek. "In four weeks, then," I reply. "I'll be 30 weeks pregnant. Let's just rush in and get it all out of the way before we have the twins."

"Sounds good to me." He draws me in for another kiss, sliding his hands through my hair as I grip his collar, pressing myself to him as close as my bump will allow. When he pulls away, he kisses my ring, then looks to the rest of the guild and shouts, "Look alive, morons! This just turned into an engagement party!"

"Alright!"

"Let's get wasted!"

"Man!"

And if we do anything better than other guilds, it's partying! In a month I'll be Mrs Redfox, but for now, we'll all drink, dance and forget the world.

Well, except me. I can't drink. Thanks, babies!

* * *

 _I really enjoyed writing this chapter. It took me a long time though and I had to split it into two, the latter part, of course, you will find in chapter 7. I think I got carried away, to be honest! Please let me know what you think, as always._

 _Tia_


	7. Chapter 7

_Okay, be warned, there is full sexual content in this chapter and a healthy dose of it! Just skip this one if you don't fancy reading, there's no plot here, just pure smut._

* * *

A few hours later, after leaving the party, we collapse against the front door of the new house, clinging to each other as our tongues dance madly. Gajeel fumbles behind himself for the door handle and we tumble inside headfirst with me landing on top. He rubs the back of his head, cursing, but then my lips are on his again, my hands scrabbling to pull him up to a sitting position. We ravish each other in the hallway, gasping, groping, moaning. I'm sure Lily was with us for the walk home, but wherever he is now, he's probably trying desperately not to be near us.

"Upstairs. Now," Gajeel growls against my lips. Nodding, I giggle like a schoolgirl, but don't even get the chance to stand before he sweeps me bridal style into his arms and practically runs up the stairs, two at a time. "Where the fuck's the bedroom in this place again?" he groans, throwing open doors as he goes along.

"Calm down," I laugh, kicking off my shoes.

"Like hell! I ain't holding out a single night more." Finally he locates our bedroom and deposits me on the bed. I love the burning lust in his eyes...it's happening tonight. After months of teasing and longing, we're going to be one again.

I pull Gajeel down to me by his belt loops and wrap my legs round his waist as our lips meet, leaning back on my elbows so his weight doesn't press too much on my belly. He groans against my mouth, running his hands up my sides and into my hair, pulling my headband free and tossing it aside somewhere. "Off," I whisper, tugging at his shirt and waistcoat. They fly off at a speed that puts Gray to shame, revealing the hard, sculpted muscles that I love so much. Reaching out, I slide Gajeel's bandana backwards and let it flutter to the bed, admiring how his hair falls freely around his face. "You're so gorgeous," I whisper, smiling up at him.

"You're one to talk," he replies gruffly. His lips fall to my neck, alternating between licking and biting, making me shiver and moan. My nails rake down his shoulders in my passion, raising red marks against his tanned skin. "Fuck, Levy..." he gasps. "You drive me fucking crazy, you know that?"

"Yep." Giggling, I push Gajeel away gently, then reach for the hem of my dress. "Let me drive you a little crazier."

Gajeel watches with huge eyes as I slowly pull the clingy fabric upwards and over my head, giving him a good show of what lies underneath. To me, it's gross, but he seems to love it, his tongue snaking out to moisten his lips, a feral growl rumbling in his chest. It wasn't the sort of dress that allowed for a bra, so I'm not wearing one, leaving my breasts bare to my fiancé's red-hot gaze. I'm still not used to how much they've grown through pregnancy, and they feel heavy in my hands as I cup and push them together, drinking in the expression on Gajeel's face. "Holy fuck," he whispers, "when did you get so bold?"

I'm sure I can blame it on the hormones later. Can I blame everything on hormones? I can try! Turning around, I get on my hands and knees, pressing my chest into the mattress. I reach back and hook my fingers into the last remaining shred of clothing I have on. Gajeel gives a low groan in response, eyes fixed on my backside. "You damn tease..."

I just smile, pulling the flimsy fabric down my thighs and exposing myself fully to him. Wordlessly, he lunges forward, grabbing my hips to pull them up further and into his face. I cry out helplessly as his tongue assaults my folds, his hands stroking my behind firmly. My whole body is tensing and shaking in response to the sheer pleasure he's giving me and I know I won't last long at this rate. The feel of his tongue against me, inside me, it's addicting. My hips grind against his devouring desperately, craving climax. It comes quickly, wracking my body with uncontrollable spasms and making me scream my fiancé's name into the pillows. He doesn't let up, continuing to lick, stretching out my orgasm before sliding two fingers into me slowly, maddeningly slowly. I wince, not quite being used to the sudden intrusion. "You okay?" he asks, pulling back.

"Yeah...it's fine."

"Tell me if I need to stop."

"Mmhm." Gently, I push back against Gajeel's fingers and gasp at the pleasurable sensation, digging my fingers into the bed. He moves in response, in and out, firmly but not rough. I can't dampen the loud moans bursting forth, his touch feels wonderful. My whole body is shaking with need. "Please!" I cry, throwing my head back. "Gajeel, please!"

His movements cease and he leans over me almost possessively, bringing his lips to my ear. I can feel his excitement pressed into my thigh. "Say it," he whispers. "Tell me what you want."

"Take me...take me, please!"

He laughs softly. "With pleasure." I feel his hands run up my sides, ghosting over my breasts for a moment before he flips me round to face him. My hands immediately fight to open his belt and rid him of the rest of his clothing, and when that's done, revealing him in all his naked glory, he pulls me into his lap, swinging us around so he's sitting against the headboard. "Is this alright?"

I just about manage to pant out my affirmative, rocking my hips desperately, feeling Gajeel's impressive length beneath me. His eyes are clouded with desire, and right now, he's the sexiest thing I've ever seen. "You're in control, okay?" he tells me quietly. "Do what works best for you."

"O-Okay." I wish my hands would stop shaking! God, I'm so pent up I can hardly take it. I grab hold of his length and position myself over it, taking deep breaths to try and clear my head. Gajeel just watches with those beautiful dark eyes, waiting patiently.

Slowly, I lower myself, biting back a cry as the head breaches my entrance, Gajeel's eyes rolling back in pleasure and his hands gripping my thighs tightly. Soon I'm seated to the hilt, feeling him buried deep inside me, enjoying the delicious stretch. "Oh, fuck, Levy!" Gajeel groans, head falling back. "God, you feel so good." One of his hands leaves my thigh and glides upwards to settle on my swollen belly, gently stroking as I come to a halt, allowing myself to adjust to the feeling of being so wonderfully filled once more.

I feel like a passionate ball of hormones right now, ready to burst. Is this down to being pregnant or just super horny after months of no sex? Whatever it is, I just want to be satisfied. I start to rock my hips, holding onto Gajeel's shoulders as the waves of pleasure start to build. "Oh, Gajeel..." I half-sigh, half-moan. I can feel his hips flexing slightly under mine, trying to push himself deeper, but I remain in control, rocking and bouncing on his shaft as I cling to him and call out his name, over and over, in a lusty moan.

Gajeel's hands travel back to my hips and grip firmly, stilling my movements. "Slow down a little," he chuckles, leaning in to steal a brief kiss. "I want to take my time and enjoy this."

I pout at him. "I thought I was in control."

"You are, but at this rate I'll come in less than a minute."

"Oh! Well, we can't have that," I giggle. He smirks back, sliding his hands round my hips to grasp my backside firmly. "Tell you what," I continue, leaning forwards as much as my belly will allow, "you take over for a bit. Just be gentle."

"Sure." His legs were flat out underneath me, but now he brings them up, planting his feet on the mattress. Slowly, he begins to thrust in and out, and his head falls back again. "God, I've missed this."

"Me too," I gasp. It feels amazing, him being inside me, filling me. His chest vibrates under my hands as he growls out his pleasure. His speed picks up ever so slightly, remaining steady and gentle, hands roaming my body and slowly driving me crazy. Teasing fingers brush over my nipples and give a gentle pinch that makes me arch my back and shudder, crying out loudly. "G-Gajeel!"

"Levy...I love it when you say my name like that..." Those wonderful hands trail lower, spreading my thighs further apart; his left hand returns to my backside, his right dipping even lower, sliding between my lower lips. I shudder as he rubs his thumb over my clitoris. Gajeel groans, watching me writhe above him. "You're so damn sexy, Levy...I need to see you come...come for me..."

He continues to rub and stroke me till I feel the tight, hot coil in my belly spring open, flooding my body with ecstasy. I can hardly control myself, I'm so sensitive from the orgasm he gave me just a few minutes previously, and I can taste blood in my mouth from where I bit my lip trying not to scream. My whole lower region is tensing and shaking in response to the pleasure, tightening around the stiff column inside me and causing Gajeel to utter a deep, throaty moan.

I start to move with him again, driving him deeper as I move faster. The noises coming from him are incredible, I can't get enough of them. Only I can make him feel this way. I feel quite proud of that! I can feel him approaching release by the way his hands are tightening their grip on me, his eyes squeezed shut, a sheen of sweat on his pierced brow. "Keep going, keep going!" he pants, and I comply happily, rocking my hips almost desperately. Finally, with a choked, gasping breath, he pushes upwards once more before I feel his climax fill me.

If I could collapse on top of him, I would, but alas, I am too fat. After catching his breath, Gajeel gently pushes me to his right, rolling over onto his side with me. His arms wind round my shoulders and his nose buries itself in my hair, a soft noise of contentment rumbling in his chest. I smile and nuzzle him lovingly. "That was wonderful."

"Mm…the best yet," he chuckles in reply. "Are you going to be this wild for the rest of the pregnancy? Cos I have zero complaints about that."

"We'll see," I laugh.

We lie together, legs entangled, for a while, till Gajeel heaves himself up and crosses the room to the adjacent en suite – giving me a great view of his butt in the process. I can feel my makeup starting to cake on my face, so when I hear him turn on the shower I get up and follow him into wash it off. He's already under the spray, rinsing his hair, and I can't help but admire him through the glass panes as I pull a flannel from the sink and wet it before rubbing my makeup off. God, he's gorgeous, just the most handsome, sexy creature. I'm marrying that hot piece of ass in a month!

A dull tap on the glass jolts me out of my fantasy. Gajeel is staring at me with a smirk. I smile at him as I finish off removing my makeup, and he gestures in a 'come hither' motion with his hand. Well, who am I to say no to being all wet and slippery with him? He pushes the door open and tugs me inside, chuckling at my surprised squeak. The warmth of the shower is heavenly, running in soothing rivulets down our bodies. "I guess I did need to clean up after doing all that," I giggle.

"We're not done."

Suddenly my back is pressed against cold glass and his lips are on mine in a deep kiss, tongue slipping into my mouth and dominating me completely. I moan against his mouth, moving my hands up to wind into his soaked hair. My legs come up around Gajeel's waist, locking my ankles round his lower back. "Someone's still pretty horny, huh?" I ask quietly as I push my hips against his erection.

He gives a hiss of pleasure at our grinding and quickly manoeuvres himself to my entrance, entering me with one quick thrust. I cry out, throwing my head back against the glass as he begins to move, rocking his hips into me, his lips on my neck, sucking and biting up to my jaw before claiming my mouth again, swallowing my moans. With us both being wet, it's a little hard to hold onto him, but I'm being pressed firmly against the shower wall so there's little chance of me slipping.

Gajeel keeps me in place with one hand under my thigh, while the other moves up to squeeze my breasts, one after the other. Since our little mishap in the old house, he hasn't given them too much attention, but now his restraint seems to have flown out the window as he rubs and pinches my nipples. It feels amazing, so wonderfully stimulating, and my belly suddenly clenches painfully in response. I gasp, my whole body tensing up. "Stop, stop, stop!"

Gajeel's thrusts cease immediately and he pulls back from my lips to frown at me. "What's up?"

Oh no. It's much too early. What's going on? "Put me down," I groan, and he does so. I put a hand on my bump, feeling the tightness beneath. "I'm having a contraction," I tell a thoroughly confused Gajeel.

"That...shouldn't be happening right now, should it?"

"I don't know!"

"I'll get Wendy to come and look at you." Gajeel leans down to kiss me softly. "Stay calm. Get yourself cleaned up and meet me downstairs, alright? You'll be okay."

* * *

Okay, so I probably panicked for nothing. After drying off, the contractions have subsided and pretty much stopped, but Wendy still rushed over as fast as she could despite the late hour. She's carrying a large bag, hair all ruffled from sleep and still in her pyjamas, and I can't stop apologising to her. "It's fine, really!" she insists. "Lie down on the sofa and I'll check you over. Gajeel?" She looks over to Gajeel, who is leaning in the doorway, observing. "Could I trouble you for a sheet or a towel, please? A _dry_ one, before you take yours off your head."

He smirks and leaves the room to find another towel. Wendy turns back to me. "Levy, I'm going to feel your stomach now, okay? Please pull your vest up a little." I do so, hiking it to just under my chest, and shift my pyjama pants down the smallest amount. Wendy rubs her hands together and presses them to my bump. "So, you were having contractions?" she asks me.

"Yeah, but they stopped pretty quickly. Still, I panicked a bit."

"You can call for me if you're ever worried, you know that." Gajeel returns with a large towel, which he hands to Wendy. "Thanks, Gajeel! Levy, um...I need you to remove your pants and underwear so I can...um...check for any dilation."

I blink at her. "I'm sorry?"

"Well, um...just to make sure you're not in labour..." Wendy fidgets uncomfortably. "I need to feel your cervix."

"You what?!" I gape at her. That's inside me!

"Levy, let her do it," Gajeel grunts. "The grumpy lizard woman's trained her well. She'll be the one delivering the twins anyway, she's going to see a whole lot more than this when they arrive."

"That's right!" Wendy nods. "I promise this won't hurt. I'll turn the other way so you can undress. Then just put the towel over your waist. I won't look, I only need to feel."

"O-Okay." Feeling very embarrassed, I strip off my lower clothing and lie back down, placing the towel over me. "Ready, Wendy." Gajeel sits on the floor next to me, eyeing Wendy curiously as she gently moves my legs into a better position. Then she reaches into her bag, pulls on a pair of latex gloves and opens a pot of some jelly looking stuff that she smears over her fingers. This is so weird!

"I'm going to put two fingers in now, Levy. Are you ready?"

I nod and take hold of Gajeel's hand, expecting it to hurt, but no, it's fine; she only stays in there a few seconds, then nods and withdraws, removing the gloves. "No dilation whatsoever," she smiles at me. "Looks like they were false labour pains. It's normal as you get closer to delivery."

"Why am I getting them? I'm ages away from giving birth, surely."

"Well, they can be set off by a few things, Miss Porlyusica says. Dehydration and um, sex are two common ones."

"Oh." Gajeel gives me a guilty glance. "That, uh, would explain it."

Wendy turns a light shade of pink as she packs away her things. "You just need to take it easy," she tells me. "False labour pains won't increase in intensity, so if you feel these again, be aware of them getting closer together and more painful. If that happens you're probably going into labour. Come and get me then, okay?"

"Thank you, Wendy."

"Yeah, we appreciate it. Sorry it's so late."

"Babies wait for nobody!" she smiles. "Don't worry about it. Goodnight, guys."

Gajeel sees Wendy out while I redress, yawning. I really hope we aren't putting her in any uncomfortable situations, given how young she is, but she's been amazing so far, a real little budding midwife. We're all super impressed with her.

I'm worn out now and ready for my bed now I know there's nothing to be concerned about with the babies. I slouch off upstairs to clean my teeth and then flop into bed, rearranging the pillows into something that better supports my fatness. Gajeel joins me a few minutes later, curling his body round mine and pressing a kiss to the back of my neck. "You okay, shrimp?" he asks softly.

"I am now. Thank you for calling Wendy."

"Hey, don't sweat it. Gotta make sure my future wife and kids are alright, haven't I?"

"Future wife..." I smile dreamily. "Oh, Gajeel...we're getting married. I still can't quite believe it."

"You better believe it," he chuckles. His hand slides round my body and takes my left in a gentle hold, stroking the ring on my fourth finger. "You're my world, Levy. There's nothing I want more than to be with you. And I want to be with you forever."

"Gajeel..." Damn my stupid pregnant hormones! The waterworks are flooding now and I turn round to bawl into my fiancé's muscled chest. He gives a soft laugh, encircling me in his strong arms. "I'm sorry," I sniffle. "I just love you so much!"

"I love you too, sweetheart. Get some sleep now, okay?"

"Mmhm. Goodnight, Gajeel."

"Goodnight, shrimp."

* * *

 _Phew! Writing that took a lot out of me. Copious amounts of tea were drunk during the making of this chapter._

 _Again, I've used some of my own experience here, namely the false labour pains. I've also had to have my cervix checked, when I was 16 weeks pregnant and when I went into labour, obviously. It isn't the most pleasant thing to go through, I won't lie, but there are many, many things that are worse than a midwife's fingers in your foof!_

 _I hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed writing it. Please tell me your thoughts!_

 _Tia_


	8. Chapter 8

_Again, I've had to do some splitting jsut to help the story flow a bit better, so this chapter is quite short. The wedding is looming now! I've only ever been to one wedding, so I do apologise if what I've written in the next few chapters isn't very traditional. I did a bit of research beforehand though, just to flesh everything out a bit._

* * *

Today's the day!

I'm getting married!

I really am!

"Stop crying!" Lucy huffs as she crouches over me. Her room is a flurry of activity as the female Fairy Tail harem prepare me for the wedding. Lucy is in charge of makeup, Mira hair, Lisanna and Evergreen last-minute tailoring, Erza nails.

Laki and Kinana are putting the finishing touches to my bouquet. Cana's not here, she assigned all the roles out a while back before she went with Juvia to see to Gajeel. Wendy hangs behind with Carla and Bisca, on standby in case the twins decide they want to make an appearance. It's not likely at all, but I have been having a lot of false contractions for the last few days, so I guess anything's possible.

I'm now the size of several whales and a hormonal mess, hence my inability to stop crying as Lucy despairs over her handiwork. She's been moody ever since Erza flat out refused to allow her to summon Cancer to do my hair. "If he goes running back to the Spirit World and tells Loke what Levy looks like before Gajeel sees for himself, there will be hell to pay!" she had said firmly. "You know Loke will tell him. The couple not seeing each other on the day of the wedding till they reach the altar is a sacred tradition, and I will not allow your Spirits to ruin this for anyone by being privy to things the groom himself isn't!"

So now I've got Mira doing it, which is fine, she knows what she's doing. Lucy still scowls at me as I dab my face, blustering out an apology. She sighs. "Okay, Levy. It's fine…I just don't want to have to keep redoing this. Try and keep the floodgates closed for a bit, _please?"_

"You can't blame her for being emotional," Bisca reprimands Lucy gently. "This is probably the biggest day of her life. You only get married once…well, ideally, anyway."

"Where's Asuka, Bisca?" I ask.

"Oh, Natsu took her this morning. He said he'd get her ready for us."

I suppress a smirk. Natsu's so much more fatherly than he gives himself credit for, whereas I don't think Lucy has a maternal bone in her body. That will be something for them to discuss if they ever realise they're head over heels for each other.

Finally, Lucy's finished caking slap onto my face, and she holds up a mirror for me. I smile widely at my reflection, hardly recognising the young woman gazing back at me. I don't often wear makeup, and when I do, I'm hopeless at applying it, but Lucy has a magic touch, and has smoothed out my complexion, highlighted, contoured and defined to perfection. My eyes shimmer with a delicate smoky hue, a blush of pink on my cheekbones. My lips she mostly left alone, just buffed and slicked on some balm to moisturise. "Now don't you _dare_ cry this off!" she warns.

"I won't," I whisper, still smiling. "Oh, Lucy…thank you."

"You look beautiful, Levy," Mira sighs as she slides rollers from my hair. "Gajeel is going to hit the deck when he sees you." She's not done much to change my hair, just neatened it up and added soft waves throughout, which she's now brushing out. Originally she wanted to pull my fringe forward and snip it to hang heavily on my forehead, but I refused. I haven't had a big fringe since I was a kid!

Erza puts the finishing touches to my nails; just a simple white and pink manicure of some description. I don't know, I've never had my nails done before. "This will be my first wedding," she says wistfully. "How lucky you are, Levy."

"Hey, you'll get your chance soon enough, Erza!" I reply.

"Yeah, once Jellal stops pretending he's engaged to a figment of his imagination," Lucy laughs. Erza turns bright red, matching her hair. "Oh, give over, Erza! We all know you two are itching to fuck each other!"

"L-Lucy!"

"You might as well get it over with," Evergreen laughs from beneath a pile of fabric, "considering he's here today! Once the drinks start flowing, you should get all over him like-"

"Ever! Really!" Erza splutters.

"Well, just be sure to pick a different bedroom to the one Levy and Gajeel defiled at the party last month," Lisanna grins.

Now it's my turn to blush! The girls have been teasing me nonstop about our little bump and grind since we arrived at Lucy's apartment this morning. Apparently telling lots of sex jokes is pretty much a requirement on the day of the wedding. Oh, and they're all quite tipsy too from necking champagne, which isn't helping. Still, it's all good fun, I suppose.

Finally, all that's left to do is get me into my dress. It fit perfectly two weeks ago when I tried it on, but then the twins decided to have a growth spurt and it's had to be adjusted to fit over my blooming bump. It's a sleeveless dress, ivory lace with a simple neckline and an empire line skirt that flows loosely over my stomach to flutter over the floor. Mira has woven a few white flowers through my hair like a tiara to complete the look. Evergreen helps me into my shoes, just a plain pair of flat, white pumps. They're hidden under the dress anyway. Kinana hands me the finished bouquet of blue and white roses and we're ready to go. All the girls are made up and dressed already, so we just have to get to Kardia cathedral now where, if all has gone according to schedule, Gajeel should be arriving at shortly with the men of the guild and all our guests.

Naturally, our friends from Blue Pegasus and Lamia Scale are coming along, and also members of the guilds we became friends with during the Grand Magic Games. Crime Sorciere are in town too to enjoy the celebrations. Flare Corona, formerly of Raven Tail, is hiding away somewhere in the apartment, peeking out occasionally to stare at Lucy who doesn't seem to have realised she's here. I didn't think the wedding would be this large, but we just couldn't exclude everyone on such an important day, and we can fit everyone in easily for the reception, which will be held in the guild hall after the ceremony.

The door bangs open and Juvia hurries in with Cana close behind. The rain woman is all a fluster, her beautifully curled hair bouncing around her face. Cana, looking quite odd in a dress, is as relaxed as ever. "Are we all ready to go?" Juvia calls out. "The cathedral is getting full!"

"You scrub up well, Levy!" Cana grins, swigging from a bottle.

"Thanks, Cana. Yep, I think we're all set!"

Juvia gives me a wide smile and reaches out to hug me. "You look so beautiful," she tells me. "Juvia thinks Gajeel will be thrilled."

"Is he okay?"

"Nervous, very nervous. You must be too, though?"

"Petrified!"

"You'll be fine. We're all so excited." Juvia sniffles and pulls back. "This will be Juvia's first wedding. Juvia couldn't be happier that her first wedding is Gajeel's. You've made him so happy, Levy. Thank you."

"Oh, Juvia..." I can feel tears pricking my eyes, but Lucy will string my guts up if I cry my makeup off now! "I'll do my best. Who knows, you might get your own wedding soon!"

"Gray-sama never even looks Juvia's way."

"We'll get him plastered for you later," winks Cana. "We'll see how he looks at you then!" She claps her hands, getting everyone's attention. "Alright, guys! Let's hop to it, we got a wedding to get to in the next hour! Vows, kiss, party! Fairy Tail, move out!"

Twenty minutes later, it's now midday, and we all spill out of the carriage Erza hired out for us to travel to the cathedral in. There's not much activity outside, I guess everyone else has gone inside to wait for us. "Okay, places, ladies," Cana calls. "Bridesmaids and maid of honour, stay here with Levy. Everyone else, with me."

So I'm left with Lucy, who is my maid of honour, Erza, Juvia and Mira, my bridesmaids. Everyone else follows Cana into the main hall of the cathedral. "This is it," Mira smiles. "Is everyone ready?"

"Just about," I reply, adjusting my dress over my bump. There's a faint wiggle of movement from the twins in response. They've been fairly quiet today.

Lucy takes my hand and surveys all of us with a pleased eye. "Okay. Let's do it, girls. Let's get Levy married."

* * *

 _Part 2 of the wedding is of course in the next chapter. I hope you will enjoy reading it when I upload it in the next couple of days. Apologies for the briefness of this chapter!_

 _Tia_


	9. Chapter 9

_The wedding itself! Yay! I really enjoyed writing this. Quick warning that my author's note at the bottom does contain spoilers for chapter 487 of the manga, so avert your eyes if you aren't up to date._

* * *

Master Makarov is waiting at the cathedral entrance, looking wonderful in a fitted navy suit. He looks so proud as he watches us approach, and when we reach him, Lucy passes my hand over to him as if this had been rehearsed a thousand times before. "She's all yours, gramps."

"Thank you, Lucy." Master gives my hand a kiss. "Levy, my sweet child…I have watched you grow from a scared little girl to the bright, lovely lady you are today. You have done me and the guild proud in the years you have been with us, and I feel privileged to give you away to Gajeel. I only wish your parents were alive to see you complete your family today."

Don't cry, don't cry…Lucy will sick Virgo on me for sure. Holding the waterfall back, I kneel to hug Master tightly. "You've done so much for me," I whisper. "I couldn't imagine anyone else walking me down the aisle." I straighten and look back at the girls, who are beaming with joy. "Let's go, everyone."

Master gently leads me through the cathedral doors and into the huge main hall. It's so _full!_ I really did not think so many would come to see us, but then again, a Fairy Tail celebration is always going to be fun. And boozy. Very boozy. I just know everyone will be off their faces by tonight.

Gajeel and his groomsmen entered first, so they're already at the far end of the aisle. His back is turned, hands clasped in front of him, but I can just imagine him wringing them together and biting his lip with nerves. Standing to the side and just behind him is Lily in his battle form as best man; further to the side are Sting and Rogue from Sabertooth, and Gray. All are wearing smart suits and ties, even Lily. I don't think I've ever seen Gray look so comfortable in so many clothes! They look amazing though, and Rogue has even tidied his wild mop of hair for today so we can actually see his eyes.

And, um…Natsu is standing furthest back, in the centre. Oh lord, he got himself ordained as a minister. I don't even know what to say to that, but I can't help laughing. Flame brain is going to marry us. How very Fairy Tail.

There are collective gasps from the benches as my gorgeous bridesmaids come into view. They're in lilac dresses of varying styles that suited them best, with Lucy being distinguishable as maid of honour by her further variation of a shawl draped loosely between her elbows. She walks behind Erza, Juvia and Mira. Little Asuka, in lilac and white, jumps out from between her parents, holding a basket of flowers that she starts to scatter petals from as she bounds along behind Lucy.

Finally, it's my turn. Master squeezes my hand and we start down the aisle. I look round at my guild mates and friends, heart bursting with joy and taking in the happiness radiating from everyone here. Guild weddings aren't a common occurrence despite many of us being so close, but besides Al and Bisca, and the inter-guild marriage of Sherry and Ren from Lamia Scale and Blue Pegasus, it doesn't happen nearly as often as you would think. So for us, this is huge, and we'll make a great day of it, I'm sure.

As we near the end of the aisle, Gajeel's head turns slightly and his eyes meet mine. I can feel a blush heating up my cheeks as he cocks his head and flashes me a smirk. "Hey, shrimp," he murmurs.

"Hey, Gajeel." Master passes my hand to him, and I kneel to let him kiss my cheek before straightening and turning to face a madly grinning Natsu. I edge a look sideways at Gajeel. His hair has never looked neater, I'm seriously impressed. It's been tied back with a few locks framing his face. "Who attacked you with the hairbrush?" I ask him.

"Uh, that was Jet. Lyos did the styling."

"Rogue!" Rogue hisses.

"Sorry."

"Okay, okay!" Natsu calls, clapping his hands together. "All present and accounted for? Awesome. Let's get started!" He clears his throat and gives the room a sweeping glance. "Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to witness the joining of two Fairy Tail wizards, Levy McGarden and Gajeel Redfox. If anybody has any lawful reason as to why these two should not be married, please speak now or forever hold your peace."

Okay, forget Gajeel's hair, Natsu's attempt at professionalism is knocking me for six! Gajeel's eyes are wide as he stares at him, a low chuckle rumbling in his chest.

"Sex before marriage!" Cana yells from the benches, and the hall bursts into laughter, Natsu falling on his ass in fits of giggles. Professionalism? Yeah, no. This is Fairy Tail we're talking about, after all. I shake my head, making a mental note to play some sort of trick on her later.

"Well, I'd rather not risk Levy's hormonal wrath today, so we'll overlook that, eh?" Natsu winks at me as he gets up and brushes himself down. "Right, where was I…? Ah yeah. Levy, do you take Gajeel to be your husband?"

"I do."

"Gajeel, do you take Levy to be your wife?"

"I do."

Natsu nods. "I believe the couple have written their own vows. Gajeel, you first."

"Ah, man…all these bloody formalities," he mutters. I hope he isn't too uncomfortable with all this. We turn to face each other and join both our hands together. His grip is warm and gentle, just like the eyes gazing into mine.

"You know, Levy...if someone had told me, all those years ago, that I'd be marrying and settling down, I'd have thought they were crazy. Me of all people, I didn't deserve that kind of happiness. But here we are. I've loved you since the S-class trials, when I promised to make you big, and...well, I managed that, didn't I?" He chuckles, indicating my huge bump. "I also made you another promise, way before that...that I would never hurt you. I'll always hold myself to that. I'm going to love you and protect you for the rest of my days on this earth, and I'm going to be the best damn father to our twins that I can be. I ain't that punk from Phantom Lord anymore. I'm a Fairy Tail wizard, soon to be a husband, soon to be a parent. I can't wish for much more than that."

My heart is hammering wildly with sheer adoration for this man. I think that's the most I've ever heard him speak, and so passionately too. In front of seven guilds, no less! His cheeks are tinted pink and his eyes have moved away from mine, but I can see he's happy. Sting and Rogue raise their eyebrows at each other and grin, looking proud of their fellow Dragon Slayer. "That was beautiful," I whisper.

"Yeah, yeah...I ain't no good at this stuff."

"Thank you, Gajeel," Natsu says. "Levy?"

Oh, I spent all night trying to memorise what I wanted to say here, but now it's all flown out of my head! I feel a bit dizzy, with nerves maybe? Gajeel frowns and moves his hands further up my arms to steady me. "Easy now, shrimp. Take your time."

I'm going to have to improvise. I take a deep breath. "I always knew you were kind at heart, Gajeel. I could tell, even back then. Despite that, you continue to surprise me. You've taken on your new family role so well and I know you'll be an amazing father. You're the only man I could ever have eyes for, the only one I'll ever love. I will love and treasure you forever, be there for you when you're sick or sad. I'm so proud to carry your children and to bear the symbol of your love for me on my hand. We've always made a good team...and from today, we're going to be a team for life. Unbreakable. The best bond in the world."

Was that okay? I bite my lip and look over my shoulder at Lucy, who flashes me a thumbs up and a nod. "Dammit, shrimp," Gajeel curses, rubbing his eyes, "you're gonna make me blub in front of everyone."

Natsu looks between the two of us, making sure we're ready to continue. "Thanks, Levy. Lily, the rings, if you will." Lily slips a large paw into his jacket pocket and pulls out two plain silver bands, which he hands over to us. I study mine, lying in Gajeel's palm, for a moment. It's shaped in such a way that it will fit with my engagement ring, which, for today, is at home. Gajeel's is just a straight band all round. I doubt he'll wear it much anyway considering he spends a lot of his time punching stuff. "One at a time, then," instructs Natsu, "slide the ring onto the other's finger, with the words "with this ring, I thee wed.""

Gajeel visibly rolls his eyes, clearly tired of the formal stuff now. He's probably dying to drag Natsu outside and fight him. Luckily for all of us, he keeps his composure and adorns my finger with my ring, murmuring the words just loud enough for me to hear. I repeat after him, admiring just how nice he looks with a ring on. He's all mine, and now it couldn't be more obvious. Even when I'm not around, it will show. My husband...my love. God, I'm so happy right now!

"By the powers invested in me by those dudes I bribed at Zentopia," Natsu exclaims, pumping a fist in the air, "I pronounce you husband and wife! Get kissing so we can get partying!"

"Finally!" Strong arms pull me close, one hand resting in the small of my back, the other threading through my hair. Our lips press together almost greedily, drinking in each other's love and passion in that single moment. The cathedral thunders with applause, whistles and cheers. "Thought Salamander would never shut up," Gajeel chuckles against my lips.

"Hey, he did good," I reply softly.

"Yeah...he did. I'll thank him with a fight later."

"Gajeel!"

"What? It'd be a dull Fairy Tail event without some fighting." Laughing, he straightens and suddenly, making me squeal, swings me up into his arms. "Party time!"

"Aye, sir!" I grin, snuggling into his chest. Lucy hurries over to give me my bouquet, and as Gajeel carries me outside, I toss it over his head. An ecstatic cry comes from Juvia, followed by a loud groan from Gray. "Gray-sama! Juvia is destined to marry next! We should plan immediately!"

"Oh god, Juvia...come on, really...?"

This has been the most amazing day. I'm so lucky. This morning I was little Miss Levy McGarden, and now I'm Mrs Redfox, and I couldn't be happier.

* * *

 _Ahhh, true love._

 _Just a quick note here - I'm fully up to date with the anime and the manga as I write this and I AM SO FREAKING HAPPY because Gajeel finally admitted his love for Levy in the manga. My fangirl senses went crazy, seriously. As always, let me know what you think!_

 _Tia_


	10. Chapter 10

_Be warned for immediate smut! That is all._

 _Oh, and blood. Sorry._

* * *

The celebrations at the guild hall have been going on for a few hours now. We're definitely not the "sit down dinner and speeches" sort of crowd, so everyone got stuck into drinking and dancing pretty much straight away. There's so many people here that nobody noticed Gajeel whisking me away upstairs. Well, apart from Erza and Jellal, but they were so wrapped up in each other as they hurried into one of the bedrooms that I doubt they care. Somehow, we've ended up in a storage closet for towels and bedding. It's cramped and dark, but in our surging primal need for each other, it's perfect.

"We should – ah! Mmm...we should get back downstairs..." I gasp, bucking my hips against the fingers moving inside me. I'm braced against the wall for support, my dress hiked up to my waist and a foot on Gajeel's shoulder as he kneels before me, pleasuring me with fingers and tongue.

"Fuck that," he murmurs, before dragging his tongue over me again. I utter a sharp cry and throw my head back. God, it feels so good and so naughty. I can hear bedsprings creaking in the next room and Erza's moans, which, if I'm honest, are a massive turn on. Gajeel grins against my lower lips, pausing for a moment. "I'm going to make you louder than Titania, shrimp. You wait and see."

"Gajeel!" It was supposed to be a disapproving tone, but it comes out as a lusty moan instead as his tongue works me frantically towards release. My belly gives a clench as I feel myself falling over the edge, and with a scream, I clutch Gajeel's hair, riding out the waves of pleasure and rocking my hips hard against his ministrations.

Slowly, Gajeel pulls back, looking up at me triumphantly. "Told you. But we're not done yet." He yanks a towel off a shelf and wipes my release from his lips and fingers while I lean back, panting, slowly coming down from my high.

A faint clinking tells me he's undoing his belt, which snaps me back to reality. I drop down to my knees and prise the belt open before undoing the button on his suit trousers and pulling them down along with his boxers. His erect length springs free and my mouth is on him in an instant, sucking him to the back of my throat and making him groan loudly. "You're so fucking good at this," he gasps out as he grabs my hair tightly with one hand. I would hope so, since I love pleasing him like this! I roll my tongue around the head and bring a hand up to stroke and caress what I can't fit in my mouth as his hips start to move, pushing himself in further. His sharp, shaky breaths are sweet music to my ears.

Erza suddenly gives a particularly loud moan from next door and Gajeel scowls. "Damn woman, she's putting me off..."

"We'll make this quick then," I giggle, pulling back. Gajeel nods, reaching into the inside pocket of his suit jacket and fumbling around. He produces a foil packet that he quickly rips open before rolling the contents onto himself. "Didn't want to risk messing your dress up," he explains when he sees me staring at him with raised eyebrows.

"You're so considerate," I laugh in response, not even bothering to question why he had a condom in his pocket in the first place. I stand and yank him forwards to bring him into a deep kiss, letting my hands roam his powerful chest. He tries to lift one of my legs up but I shake my head, pushing him back again. Now it's his turn to cock an eyebrow as he watches me quizzically. Flashing him a teasing smile, I turn myself around to lean against a pile of boxes, pulling my dress back up to my waist before resting my head on my elbows, looking back over my shoulder at him.

"Holy fuck, woman," he growls, grabbing my hips. "The things you do to me..." With one thrust, he buries himself inside me and I almost scream at the sheer intensity of pleasure suddenly coursing through my body. His thrusts aren't rough, but they aren't gentle either, giving enough to drive me crazy without being too much for my poor pregnant self to take. He knows me so well now. My arms drop to lie flat on the boxes and I rest my brow against them, unable to quieten my moans.

"Louder," Gajeel orders, moving a hand round to squeeze one of my breasts through my dress. The added stimulation is enough to increase my volume, and now I'm crying out in ecstasy as I desperately push back, grinding my hips against his and provoking a series of hissed curses from him. He's close, I can feel his grip starting to tremble. Continuing to push back, I clench my muscles tightly around him, increasing the friction for us both. This time he lets out an almighty growl, descending into a low, satisfied moan. A few quick thrusts and he comes to a shuddering halt, panting out my name, as I close my eyes and savour the deep pulsing within me that signals his climax.

Slowly, he lowers his body over mine, pressing kisses to my cheeks, my neck, anywhere he can reach. "I just can't get enough of you," he whispers.

I arch my back and sigh softly, enjoying the gentle touch. "What is it with us and having sex in random places?" I giggle.

"I like it," he replie, nuzzling me.

"Me too."

Gajeel lets out a heavy breath and rests his forehead on my shoulder blade. "So...Mrs Redfox...it's about time we rejoined the celebrations, don't you think?"

"Yeah..." Pulling my hips forward, Gajeel slips out of me and I start rummaging around for wherever he threw my underwear. "I wonder if Erza and Jellal are still going at it?" I listen for a moment, but it seems to be silent next door.

Gajeel tilts his head to the side, frowning as he cleans himself up. His Dragon Slayer hearing is a lot better than mine. "...They're done. Maybe he'll be a little less broody now and Erza will smile more, eh?" He bares his teeth in an amused grin.

"Wow, you almost sound caring," I reply, rolling my eyes.

"Now now, wifey mine, don't go putting words in my mouth like that." A hand lightly spanks my backside. "Come on, downstairs before Mira comes up and finds us again."

"Just a sec." I smooth my dress down over my bump and press a hand to it, feeling the faint movements from the twins. They're still quiet, even after our exertions. Everyone has told me that's normal as they get bigger, but still, I guess I'll have Wendy check me over when we go down. Gajeel pushes open the closet door and exits first, his footsteps heavy on the stairs leading back into the main hall.

A few minutes later, after rearranging the closet and hiding any evidence, I emerge as well. As I pass by the next room, the door opens and Erza pokes her head out, looking distinctly ruffled. "Erza, your makeup is smudged!" I tell her, pointing to her face while trying not to burst into a fit of giggles. Her ponytail is also lopsided and there's a giant hickey on her neck. Dear lord, someone please feed Jellal!

"Oh, um...thanks, Levy." She's completely plastered, she can barely focus on me. "Is it safe to come out now?"

"It was always safe to come out! What on earth was he _doing_ to you in there?"

"I'll tell you if you tell me what _he_ was doing to _you,"_ she smirks. My face flushes bright red and she laughs. "Later, okay? I uh, need to clean up."

"You certainly do!" I reply. She gives me a tipsy smile and withdraws back into the room, leaving me to start downstairs, rubbing my belly with a frown. I'm aching a little now, which isn't a usual occurrence after sex. It might have been the position, I don't know. But my back is hurting too...then again, that's normal given how huge I am now.

Reaching the main hall, I glance about for Wendy, and I spot her in conversation with her friend Sherria from Lamia Scale. Nobody has noticed me come down, so hopefully I can avoid questions! The ache in my belly is increasing quite rapidly now...it doesn't feel much like a contraction. Whatever it is, I don't like it! I wander over to the bar and get a glass of water from Kinana, who eyes me with concern. Is the pain showing on my face? Okay, I really need to get Wendy. Am I going into labour? Was having sex a bad idea?

Sudden fear floods me. Gajeel...where's Gajeel?!

Something is wrong, I just know it. I...I feel faint...

"Levy!" A pair of slender arms grab me and I look up into the startled eyes of Lucy. By now my breathing is heavy and I can feel a sudden dampness down below. Did I spill my water? "Levy!" she exclaims, gazing at me worriedly. "You almost fell over! Are you okay?"

"Lu..." My head feels like it's in the clouds and my stomach is agonisingly tender as I clutch at it. "I don't feel too well...I think I need to sit down-" But I'm cut off as a scream rents the air. Lucy. Lucy is screaming, eyes wide and fearful. "Lu?"

"Levy, you're bleeding!"

Horror stabs me in the heart.

Bleeding?

Not quite understanding, I look down slowly at the red stain spreading up the hem of my dress. Oh god, what's happening?! There's a crowd around us, Lucy is screaming for Wendy, clutching me, and now Gajeel is by my side, then Wendy, but I'm...I'm having trouble focusing...

My babies...are my babies going to be okay...?

As I start to drift into unconsciousness, I hear two voices above the terrified babble.

"We need to get these babies out _now!_ Sherria, I need you!"

"What the fuck is going on?! Levy! _Levy!"_

* * *

 _Oh wow. I will admit, my heart was pounding as I wrote this. It's been a long time since my work has had that effect on me._

 _Now, I have to say this - your baby's movements should **not** slow down or become fainter in the third trimester. Or ever. Yet expectant mothers are still often told that it's normal as the baby or babies start to run out of room. This is a very dangerous bit of "advice." I wanted to include it here because A) not every pregnancy is perfect and risk-free, nor are expectant mothers properly educated and B) I'm a sucker for drama. Also it's kind of ironic I suppose; you'd expect Levy to be aware of this through reading, but books aren't always right!_

 _If your baby's movement patterns change, decrease or you stop feeling movement, please please please call your midwife or delivery unit right away. The Kicks Count charity is a fabulous place to visit if you want to learn more._

 _Please let me know what you think. Hopefully this wasn't too traumatic for anyone to read._

 _Tia_


	11. Chapter 11

_Something just sprung up in me to write a chapter from Gajeel's point of view, so here it is. My apologies if it's a little out of character. The times he has shown emotion, it's been quite tearful, so I've tried to use that as reference._

* * *

Numb.

That's all I can describe myself as being right now. Completely and utterly numb.

A few hours ago, on what should have been the happiest fucking day of our lives, everything went wrong.

I don't think I've ever cried as much as I have today. Fucking damn it all! Why?! Why did this happen?!

"Gajeel…please sit down. You need to remain calm."

Rage rises in me at the innocent words uttered by the rain woman sat across from me. "You have _no fucking idea_ how I feel right now Juvia, okay? Don't tell me what to do!" I snarl at her, clenching my fists. She stares back at me, her face remaining that trademark neutral slackness. God, why is she always so _calm_ around me? "My wife is back there somewhere, being operated on, and I have no idea if my kids are alive or dead right now! I don't know what's going on! So tell me, how am I supposed to stay calm?"

"Juvia didn't mean to upset you," she sighs, dropping her gaze. I slam my first into a pillar, cracking it and sending dust flying over my bloodied knuckles. It isn't my blood…it's hers. Levy's.

She collapsed…she just collapsed without warning. There was so much blood…her wedding dress was scarlet and she'd gone so white I thought she'd dropped dead right there and then. Wendy and that Lamia god slayer girl intervened and had me carry my wife's blood-soaked body into the infirmary, where they then kicked me out so they could see to her. All I heard was that they needed to operate and get the twins out as quickly as they could.

Since then, we've heard nothing. Everyone is in shock, obviously. Mostly they went back home or to their hotels, wherever the hell they were staying while they were here for the wedding. Salamander and Happy took Lucy home after she became downright hysterical, and now it's just me, Juvia, who refused to let me remain here alone, and Lily, who has nodded off from waiting. How the rain woman has managed to deal with me, I don't know. All I've done for the past two hours is break stuff, shout and cry. If this were a hospital, I'd have been booted out long ago.

Juvia stands with another sigh and approaches me as I prepare to smack the pillar again. Reaching out, she grabs my hand and pulls it close, shaking her head. "Stop it," she says firmly. "She's going to be okay. The babies are going to be okay."

"How…how can you possibly…?"

"You have to hope! Don't give up on them, Gajeel! Your wife and children! Juvia knows they will be okay. Don't give up…please."

This damn woman…always so calm. How does she do it? Why? Dammit! I'm going to fucking cry again.

"Gods, Juvia, I'm scared right now…"

"I know, Gajeel...Juvia is here for you..."

I've ended up on my knees somehow, sobbing like a broken thing into her chest. She just holds me, stroking my hair, letting me soak her front with my tears. She's all water anyway so I doubt she's bothered by it. Somewhere in the back of my mind I register Lily waking up and joining us but I'm too damn distraught to acknowledge him.

"You shouldn't have to see me like this," I mutter, rubbing my eyes. "Sorry."

"Don't apologise," Juvia replies softly. She pulls a handkerchief out of her dress and wipes my cheeks. Gotta admit, her closeness is some small comfort. I wouldn't let any other woman – besides Levy, of course – near me like this, when I'm feeling vulnerable and ready to break shit. "You have every right to be upset. Just...try not to crack any more pillars, okay?"

"I'll try."

Lily pats my arm with a dark paw. "They'll be alright, Gajeel. Any minute now, you'll get some news."

A minute passes...

Then five...

Ten...

What the _hell_ is going on in there?

* * *

Finally, the infirmary door swings open and Carla walks into the room, looking worn out. "What's the situation?" Lily asks her brusquely, putting a paw over my mouth before I can burst into a thousand questions at once.

The white Exceed gives us all a half-smile as she wipes her own paws. "Levy will be okay. She lost a lot of blood, but the operation was successful, and now she just needs rest."

"What happened to her?" I growl. "Where's Wendy? Why were _you_ in there when I wasn't allowed?"

"Because," she snaps, "Wendy and Sherria required an extra pair of hands, and you would have broken everything in sight, judging by the state of this room. Wendy is with the babies right now and cannot spare even a minute for you. As for Levy, she suffered a placental abruption. The baby girl would have suffocated within minutes if the girls hadn't intervened as quickly as they did."

"I ain't a doctor, Carla, what the fuck does that even mean?!"

"It means," another voice floats in and Sherria appears, her front streaked with blood and god knows what else, "that the baby girl's placenta, that connected her to Levy, had come away from the uterine lining...that was the cause of the blood loss. It's more common in multiple pregnancies. The baby wasn't getting any oxygen, so...she's going to need quite a lot of care. The boy is faring better, but they're quite premature, and neither of them can breathe too well on their own just yet. Wendy is staying with them to keep them going. They're beautiful, Gajeel. We can't wait for you to meet them."

My heart has all but frozen in my chest. Juvia squeezes my hand, biting her lip, and Lily just shakes his head, eyes downcast. I don't know what to do...dammit, my kids are suffering from the minute they entered the world and I can't protect them from it. "...Can I see them?" I ask, my voice hollow.

"You can see Levy. The babies need more time, I'm afraid," Sherria replies. "Come with me, and wash your hands, please."

"Sure." I follow Sherria to the infirmary, stopping at a side room, where there's a large sink and a pile of bloodied instruments and sheets. My nose fills with the scent of Levy's blood and I grimace, feeling nausea rising in my throat. I never want to know the scent of her pain again. Everything happened too fast to get her to a hospital, so this is all the girls seem to have been able to do. I scrub my hands clean and Sherria hands me a towel to dry them on. "I'll take you in now, but she's not going to wake up for a while," she tells me quietly. "Wendy cast a sleeping spell on her so she wouldn't feel any pain."

"Okay. Take me to her, please."

It isn't like me to beg for anything. But right now I just have to see my wife before I smash something else into pieces.

Sherria opens the infirmary doors and gestures to me as she crosses the room and pulls back a curtain at the far end. Levy lies there in a bed, her face so fucking white that her hair practically glows blue in contrast. Tubes run into each of her hands, attached to some kind of drips, I've no clue what they are. Her chest rises and falls slowly as mine tightens, but I won't cry, not now, I've nothing left to cry with. The whole room is eerily silent. There should be the wail of hungry babies, Levy's happy, animated speech, but nothing. It's like death. I can barely stand it.

"Where are the twins?" I ask Sherria as I sit down in the chair beside the bed.

"On the next floor up. Wendy is waiting for Miss Porlyusica to arrive."

"Dammit, she should have been here the instant this all happened!"

"I'm sorry, Gajeel. Wendy said…she was on her own for all this. And she did do great, I promise. Levy will heal up just fine-"

"So I've been told, but I want to know about the babies! Why the hell can't I see them?! Don't you think I have the right!?" I glare at the girl with all the venom I can muster, but she just stares back at me expressionlessly, folding her arms. She says nothing, but she seems to be waiting for me to calm down, which takes a few minutes.

Finally she asks, "Are you done?"

"…Yeah."

"I understand, I do. We're all scared right now. But Levy and the babies, they need you to keep a level head. You need to be there for them. Look…" She lifts the sheet covering Levy's prone form, and the scent of blood hits me again with vengeance. "We had to act fast…so she's going to spend quite a few weeks in recovery till her wound heals, even with our magic."

A huge load of gauze and bandages swathe her hips, covering what is going to be a significant scar. Most of the blood has been cleaned from her, but it's still strong enough in my nose to make me want to gag. Damn my fucking Dragon Slayer senses! I've never wished this badly not to have them. I swallow the lump in my throat and reach for Levy's face, touching her cheek. She feels warm…it comforts me some. "When can she leave here?"

"In a few days, if she feels ready. The babies will have to either stay here with Wendy and Miss Porlyusica, or be moved to the hospital, whichever suits you. I'm going to stay here as long as I can too…I can't go back to my guild knowing that I could be of some help."

"I…appreciate it, Sherria. They would have died without you."

She smiles at me. "A compliment from you is really something. Listen, I'm going to check in with Wendy now…if anything changes, one of us will let you know straight away. Stay with Levy as long as you want."

She looks exhausted. I'd tell her to go and get some sleep, but I can't find any more words right now, so I just nod and she leaves the room quietly.

Levy looks so peaceful lying there as if she were sleeping. That's always my favourite part of waking up in the morning…seeing her face. Dammit, she's so beautiful, even in this state. She didn't deserve this. How could everything have gone so wrong? We knew she would have the twins early…but not like this. None of us expected this.

Fuck!

What the fuck am I supposed to do?!

There's nothing I _can_ do. That numbness from before settles back down on me like a heavy blanket as I rest my arms on the bed, and my head on my arms.

This sheer loneliness…I've not felt it for a long time. Levy accepting me into her life was like a light of hope, something I hadn't known since Metalicana left me. When she collapsed, that light went out. I thought I'd lost her for good.

…

The babies…I wonder who they take after, me or her…

I want to see them…soon…

…Please wake soon, Levy…we can see them together…

…I love you. So fucking much…

…

…

* * *

 _This one was tricky. I found it very hard to capture how Gajeel must have been feeling at the time. I had little to draw on from my own personal experiences - my son spent 3 days in intensive care after he was born after contracting sepsis during my labour, and I felt the numbness, certainly, but I don't think there was ever any risk of him dying from it. Still...it's not something I would ever wish on anybody. Your child suffering as soon as they are born is a living hell._

 _As usual, please tell me what you think._

 _Tia_


	12. Chapter 12

_I've not been too happy with this chapter the whole time I've been writing it, so I may come back and do some edits. We're back to Levy now. I hope you enjoy!_

* * *

Damn…everything hurts…

Even moving my eyes hurts…

I think I'll just stay here for a while…where I'm comfortable…

What happened, anyway? It's all a little fuzzy.

Oh, yeah. The wedding. It was our wedding! And after that…I collapsed.

Oh god, the babies! Are they okay! Who's screaming? Why do I hurt so much?

"Eek! Please lie down, Levy!"

It's…it's me. I'm screaming. My throat feels red raw and the pain in my abdomen is unbearable. Tiny hands grasp my shoulders and push me back down firmly. "Levy! You can't get up so suddenly like that! Sherria, can you get over here, please?"

Wendy? And Sherria? A warm glow soothes my pain and I relax, sighing. Drowsiness overcomes me and I start to drift off again…

No. I need to know what happened.

"Wendy…" My voice is cracked and shaky. With whatever strength I have left, I open my eyes, searching for her. She stands to my left, hair piled up high on her head, hands braced on my shoulders. She's beaming at me though, despite her position. "We're so glad you're awake!" she tells me. "Please don't try to get up yet, not till you're more alert."

"What's going on?" I look down to where there should be a huge, swollen bump, but instead, nothing but soft, deflated tissue. "Where are my babies?"

"They're with Miss Porlyusica. We'll take you to see them soon. You had some pretty major complications, and we had to operate to save all three of you. You've been sleeping for two days straight."

"Two days? Was it really that bad?"

"I panicked. I'm really sorry. You were only supposed to sleep for a few hours, but my spell was too strong and then we couldn't wake you up. Miss Porlyusica said to leave you, it wouldn't do you any harm." I'm not going to bolt up again, so she removes her hands from my shoulders. "Can we get you anything, Levy? You must be thirsty at least."

"…I would kill for some really sweet tea."

"Sherria?" Wendy looks to her friend and she nods, hurrying from the room. The little Dragon Slayer starts fussing with my pillows and slowly helps me sit up as comfortably as I can manage. The pain isn't as bad now…I just feel stiff as hell. Sherria returns with a tray, which she pops down on a nearby table and starts pouring tea for all of us.

Once she and Wendy are sat down with me and we've got our cups, I speak again. "Tell me everything." God, this tea tastes amazing. Bisca did tell me the first food and drink after having a baby is the best ever.

Wendy regards me with her big eyes over the top of her cup. "You suffered a placental abruption," she begins. "There wasn't any time to get you to a hospital, so we operated here. You pulled through fine, you just needed fluids and some blood. The babies…they're quite premature, so they struggled at first with their breathing. I had to give them a steady supply of oxygen myself for several hours before Miss Porlyusica arrived. Since then, she took over, and they've come along massively. They're having some trouble regulating blood sugar and body temperature, but once you meet them, I get the feeling that will sort itself out quite quickly, and their breathing is good, they don't need any help now. Miss Porlyusica's magic really is amazing, the wonders she's worked on them. They should be ready to go home in a few weeks, once they're a little bigger."

"…I can't take them home?"

"Not yet. There's nothing stopping you from staying here in the guild hall with them. You know Mira would be more than happy to wait on you hand and foot!" Wendy gives a giggle as she puts her cup aside and takes my wrist gently to feel my pulse. "The general outlook is good though. The babies are going to be alright. There were times we thought we were losing them, but they're strong, just like their parents."

I don't even know how to process any of this. My babies…they're somewhere in this building, they've been sick and struggling and I haven't been there for them. I could have died. _They_ could have died. I'm forever in the girls' debt. Tears fill my eyes but I'm too tired to wipe them away. "Thank you…"

"Oh, it was nothing," Wendy replies softly. "You just need to rest now."

"Is…Is Gajeel here too?"

This time it's Sherria who speaks up. "He's hardly left your side this whole time, Levy. Poor guy's been in bits. Miss Porlyusica sent him home a few hours ago so he could get some sleep, or rather, she had to knock him out and Lily took him home. He wouldn't have left you otherwise."

That's enough to finally make me smile. My lovely husband…I hope he's been alright during all this. I take another deep drink of tea, wishing for more as I empty the cup. Wendy quickly refills it for me. "Has he seen the babies?"

"No," Sherria replies. "He kept asking at first, but Miss Porlyusica said no. In the end he agreed to wait till you woke up, so you can meet them together."

"That's so sweet of him. Please tell me he didn't break anything though." Wendy and Sherria exchange glances and I groan. "Yeah, that was too much to hope for, wasn't it?"

"He, uh…likes to break stuff when he's worried, doesn't he? Anyway…should I send someone out to fetch him?" Wendy asks. "He'll be so pleased that you're awake."

"Yes, please. I don't want him worrying any more than he'll be doing already."

* * *

I think I dozed off again for a bit after I was filled in on all the details. When I come to, it's brighter in the room, a beam of sunlight hitting me in the face. "Ow," I mutter, turning my head away from it.

I'm hurting again. I mean, yeah, I just had major abdominal surgery, but I didn't expect it to hurt this much! I rub my sagging stomach and grimace. "Bet this is going to look fabulous," I mutter to myself.

"Oh, Levy, you're awake again." Soft footsteps approach from the other side of the room and Sherria pops her head round the curtain, smiling. "How do you feel?"

"Sore."

"Okay, I'll help you out…I need to take off your dressing as well, is that alright?"

"Yeah, of course."

I'm in awe at how amazingly calm Sherria and Wendy have been this whole time. Wendy has come so far from the shy little girl she was when she joined the guild. Now she's practically a midwife in the making! Sherria murmurs soothing words as she gently removes the dressing over my hips. "We'll keep it off now, so it can air and heal faster."

"It bloody hurts," I hiss, gritting my teeth. It's hideous, a long, thin incision over my bikini line, red raw and bruised. I should just be grateful my babies are alive due to this, but still…

"I know, Levy. Just hang tight for a minute or so." She washes the ugly wound delicately, then places a hand over it, and as she releases her magic, I instantly feel the pain ebbing away. Oh lord, the relief is better than sex, seriously. I'm going to have to hang onto this sensation, because Gajeel and I definitely won't be going at it anytime soon.

Sherria practically reads my mind at this moment. "You'll have to make sure Gajeel knows to be gentle with you. Even with our magic, you might be sore for a few weeks."

"I'll tell him. Is he coming here soon?"

"He arrived not long ago. He's waiting outside this room right now."

My heart skips a beat. "He is?!"

"Yeah, he was waiting for you to wake up again. Are you ready to meet the babies?"

"Yes, please!" Joy swells in my chest. I can't imagine how worried Gajeel must have been this whole time, and I'm so eager to finally meet our little ones. Sherria takes my hands and helps me slide out of bed and to my feet. Gosh, I'm wobbly! "Whoa, it's like I've been lay down forever," I murmur, clinging to the younger girl.

"You'll be fine in a minute. How do you feel?"

"I'm good. Just a bit worn out."

"Ready to move?"

"Yup."

It's time!

The trip from one side of the room to the other takes an age on account of my stiffness and soreness. Sherria keeps an arm round my waist to hold me steady, letting me set the pace. "Take your time," she tells me softly. "You're doing really well." Her other hand is on my shoulder, guiding me gently.

"My legs feel like jelly…" I groan. "This is normal, right?"

"Sure is. Being up and about is good for you right now, I know it doesn't feel it, but you'll get used to it. Here we go…" Sherria pushes the door open and guides me out carefully.

Soft snoring reaches my ears and I can't help but smile. He waited for me…all this time.

Gajeel sits on the floor opposite the door, back to the wall, arms folded and head dropped onto his chest. A small scowl mars his handsome features, something that I'm not used to seeing as he sleeps. Things must have been really stressful for him the last few days.

"Gajeel!" Sherria calls, and he jerks upright with a few curses. Blinking a few times, his eyes rove around till he focuses on us. My breath catches in my chest at the sudden outpour of sheer emotion that crosses his face.

"Levy…"

"Gajeel…"

I touch Sherria's arm and nod to tell her I'm okay. She backs away with a small smile and sets off to the next floor. I still feel wobbly, but I'm managing. Gajeel gets to his feet and cocks his head to the side, his usual smirk coming back. "Took you long enough to come round," he remarks with a watery chuckle, sounding a little choked up.

"You're terrible," I reply, rolling my eyes. He laughs in response as he approaches me. His strong arms gently pull me close and I bury my head in his chest, breathing in his wonderful metallic scent. I'd cling to him, but my hands are quite tender from where I've had cannulas inserted. Instead I lay my palms flat in the small of his back, returning his embrace.

"How are you feeling?" he asks me, his voice slightly muffled as his head is currently nestled into my hair.

"Sore, tired, in dire need of a shower…you know, standard postnatal stuff."

Gajeel pulls back and rakes his eyes over me, frowning. Once upon a time I would have squirmed under his gaze, but now I just love seeing the sparkle in his eyes as he beholds me, his wife, the mother of his children. "I'm serious, shrimp. You collapsed in a pool of your own blood and Wendy had to cut you open to save you and the twins. Are you sure you're alright?"

"Yes, Gajeel, I'm fine, really. I just need a bit of rest and support." I smile broadly at him and his expression softens a little. He runs his tongue over his lips and swallows hard, and I'm pretty sure he's trying not to cry, but he holds himself together and draws me in for a kiss so gentle I have to wonder whether I'm dreaming or not.

"Well," he murmurs against my lips, "I'd be a pretty crap husband and father if I didn't give you that rest and support, huh? Just say the word and I'll be there to help out. For now though…" He pulls back and brushes some of my messy hair out of my face, "it's time for us to meet our little ones."

"I'm so excited," I beam, clasping my hands together. "They're upstairs, right?"

"Yeah, with the old hag. Sherria told me which room earlier. Come on, let's go."

I can tell he's desperate to sweep me up and carry me, to lessen my pain, but I won't let him. I need to do this on my own. Loads of women have to have surgery to get their babies out, it's not like I'm the only one in the world. Okay, so I had other complications too, but I'm fine! I'm going to manage.

Sherria is waiting for us upstairs, wringing her hands as she stands outside a door. "Holding up okay?" she asks me.

"Just about," I reply. "What should we expect when we go in there?"

"Well, wouldn't you prefer to see for yourself?" she beams. "You're going to love them, they're so beautiful." She pushes open the door and gestures to us. "In you come!"

It smells very…sterile in here. Very clean. And it's so warm. Gajeel reaches down for my hand and grips it lightly as we approach the single incubator in the corner. Wendy is leaning over it while Miss Porlyusica sits and appears to be observing her, though her sharp eyes flit over to us after a few moments. "Ah, there you are," she exclaims. "The infants are doing well. You'll be able to hold them and see if they will respond to feeding. They've been sustained on Wendy's magic till now, but they will need proper nutrition now you're awake."

Truth be told, I hadn't even put any thought into how I'm going to feed two small, wriggling babies. Just one looks hard enough from the few times I've witnessed babies being fed. I've got to try though. Wendy gives us a wide smile as she gently lifts one baby out of the incubator. "Sit down please, Levy," she says, and I do so. A tiny bundle is settled into the crook of my left arm, then another in my right.

I stare down at the pink, wrinkled faces of our children and feel my heart swelling with instant pride. They both have a streak of dusty blue hair, and as our daughter cracks open her eyes, I see a glint of red. "She has your eyes," I breathe, glancing over my shoulder at Gajeel, who is leaning over the back of the chair, gazing down with a truly joyful smile. Our son slumbers on, his mouth making little sucking movements.

They're perfect…they're beautiful. I can't quite believe it. Our children. These are ours.

I look up at Wendy and Miss Porlyusica with tears in my eyes. "Thank you so much. I don't know how I can ever repay you for saving them."

"No need for thanks," Wendy replies softly. "We did what we had to do."

"Well, you were amazing," Gajeel remarks, surprising us all. He surprises us further when he comes round from behind the chair and pulls Wendy into a hug. Bless her, she barely comes up to his navel. "I mean it," he tells her gruffly. "They'd all have died without you and Sherria. Thank you."

"Really, it was nothing," she protests humbly, but she returns the hug with a smile.

It doesn't seem like the babies are too interested in feeding right now, so Miss Porlyusica helps me unwrap their blankets and slides them under my billowy medical gown, where she tucks them in securely and makes sure their airways are clear. "Do this with them as much as possible," she tells me. "It will encourage their growth and stimulate your milk supply. Given the amount of blood you lost, I wouldn't be surprised if your milk came in late. Just latch them on as often as they show the need for it, and the rest will happen naturally."

I nod at her, savouring the blissful sensation of the two tiny creatures nestled against my skin. She leaves the room with Wendy to give us some privacy, Gajeel returning to the back of the chair, grinning down at the twins. "I can't believe I had a part in creating these two," he murmurs, reaching out to stroke their tiny hands.

"Oh, Gajeel…we're parents," I sigh happily. He chuckles in agreement, kissing my cheek. The twins wriggle against me, nuzzling their delicate faces into my chest. "They really won't be able to go home for a while, will they?" I ask Gajeel, who shakes his head with a frown. My heart sinks somewhat, but I knew deep inside that they would be too frail right now, they need proper care. "I don't want to be away from them," I sniffle, feeling tears well up again.

Gajeel wipes my cheeks and wraps his arms round my shoulders, leaning his head against mine. "Stay here with them then. They need their mother as much as they need Wendy and the others."

"What about you?"

"I can stay here too. I doubt anyone would have a problem with that. Lily can look after himself without me for a while. You have to rest as much as you can, so you're going to be thankful for me being at your beck and call." He smirks, pressing another kiss to my cheek. "Make the most of it, shrimp. This is the one time you can use me as your personal assistant."

"Can I call you my slave?" I giggle.

"Can you fuck."

"Gajeel! Babies!"

"…You mean I can't swear anymore?"

"Not around them!"

"Well, shit."

" _Gajeel!"_

"Argh! Sorry! Oh man…this is going to be hard."

Oh, I'm a mum! Me, Levy Redfox, mother to twins, married to a strapping hunk of a Dragon Slayer. I couldn't be happier.

Though I'm really hoping I can get a shower soon.

* * *

 _I've drawn on some personal experience here - as I've previously stated, my son spent 3 days in intensive care himself when he was born due to being born with sepsis. I didn't get to see him for about 6 hours after he was born and when I did see him, he was completely uninterested in nursing. It took days to get him to have a proper feed, once he was a little better and was off his fluid and antibiotic drips. Looking at him now, you'd never guess he was so ill back then. At the time of writing this, he's 21 months old, and still nursing successfully. I'm not one of those mother earth types, I promise! Our experience motivated me to train as a breastfeeding peer supporter, and now I help out at my local hospital in my spare time, helping new mums feed their babies. It's very rewarding if a bit nerve wracking._

 _Anyway, enough about me. I hope this chapter was okay. I'm still not happy with it. Please tell me what you think, as always. I'm seeing a lot of followers but not too many reviews - come on guys ;)_

 _Tia_


	13. Chapter 13

_I wanted to write another chapter from Gajeel's POV, there's so much I feel we haven't seen through his eyes. I hope that's alright with you guys!_

* * *

So, it's been eight weeks since the twins were born. Thanks to the combined efforts of Wendy, Sherria and Porlyusica, they fought back amazingly and we were able to take them home after a fortnight. We struggled to come up with names for them, but the day before they were allowed home, Levy decided on Shutora for our daughter, Yaje for our son. She probably read them in a book somewhere, knowing her.

I've been doing my best. Being a father is fucking tiring, seriously, I'm constantly exhausted. I've only managed to go out on one job since the twins arrived, and Levy was in hysterics when I returned home, so any idea of me even leaving the house right now is meltdown material. Lily's had to step in and handle any external matters, though he seems quite happy to help out and he does his bit too, carrying the twins around and playing with them.

Still, Levy seems to have settled down a little today and it might be safe for me to stop by the guild. If I can get her to come with me it would be a bonus. Most of the time she stays in bed, either reading or sleeping till the twins need feeding, and even then it seems like a massive effort for her to go to them. I'm concerned she isn't coping too well, but every time I ask if she's okay she just brushes me off. Or cries. She's cried a lot recently.

"Hey, shrimp," I call, poking my head round our bedroom door. I know she's curled up somewhere under the covers in bed, but she doesn't respond. "I fancy dropping by the guild. You wanna come with? Be good for you to get some fresh air."

After a few moments she pops her head out from under the blankets. I don't like saying it, but she looks a total mess. She's had plenty of opportunities to get out of bed and take a shower at the very least, but she's hardly moved for days.

She shakes her head at me, as I knew she would. "Alright," I sigh. "I'll take the twins so you can get some more rest, how about that?"

"What?!" She suddenly looks panicked. "No! They're too young! What if they need feeding? They need me, they can't go out yet!"

"Whoa, whoa, Levy! Calm down. They could do with being outside too. You can't keep them cooped up in here forever."

She just glares at me. "Yes I can. They're my babies."

"They're my babies too, you know."

"I feed them! I get up with them in the night!"

Dear lord, I can't fucking deal with this. This was not how I imagined life as a family. I love her, I love my kids, but she's turned into something I hardly recognise. Angry words are out of my mouth before I can stop myself. "Yeah, after you leave them to scream for god knows how long. You've shown zero interest in them for the last two weeks. Don't pretend now that you want to keep them close. What the hell is wrong with you?!"

Oh, shit. Now I've done it. Her eyes go wide and watery and she bites her lip. Dammit, she's crying again. I know if I go near her, I'll make it worse. "I'm taking Shutora and Yaje out, Levy," I tell her firmly, "and you…you need to figure out what's going on in that head of yours. I'm done here. See you later."

Sighing, I leave the room, calling for Lily as I head downstairs. He's sat on the floor, changing Shutora's nappy. "Yeah, what's up?" he asks, then frowns, his ear twitching. "You made her cry again, didn't you?"

"I didn't mean to," I growl as I pluck Yaje from his basket and wrap a thick blanket around him. "I'm going to the guild with the twins; do me a favour and grab Shutora. Can't stand to be here right now, Levy's so damn sensitive to everything. I can't do a thing without her crying."

"You're such a fool," Lily sighs. He wraps Shutora up and settles her in his arms before we leave the house. She protests for a few moments, but quickly falls asleep in Lily's warmth. It's difficult to imagine that she nearly died when Levy collapsed. She did need some more care initially, and even now, she's quieter than her brother, but she's developing pretty well. I'm damn proud of my kids and they still can't do anything other than cry, pee, poop and be sick on themselves, but hey, I'm still proud. They fought back when other babies might have given up and died. They're going to fit in just fine at Fairy Tail.

"Gajeel," Lily says as he shifts Shutora to his other arm, "have you considered the fact that Levy may not be well right now?"

"Huh?" I frown at him. "She's not ill. Just complains about her scar hurting a lot."

"I don't mean physically," he replies. "Her mind doesn't seem as…sound…as it once was."

"What are you getting at, cat? You saying she's gone nuts?"

"Gajeel…have you heard the term "postnatal depression" before?"

I scratch my head, thinking. "Yeah, a few times. Is it serious?"

"Depends on the person. Levy…she's not herself at all. I think she needs some real help here."

"And how the hell am I supposed to help her when she's being like this?" I ask roughly. Yaje stirs in my arms at my tone and his eyes flit around for a moment before he drifts off again. "She won't let me near her, all she does is sleep and cry. She's been a nightmare these last few weeks."

Lily scowls at me in response. "Those are the last words she needs to hear. If she truly is unwell, she needs your support more than ever. A little time away from her will do you good, but you can't hide forever. You need to show her that you're there for her and that you still love her." He narrows his eyes suspiciously. "You _do_ still love her, don't you?"

"Of course I do!" I exclaim. "I married her, for crying out loud! I know she's in there somewhere, I just…don't know how to get her out of this mess."

"Well, that's what your guild family is for. They support you, and you can support your wife." We've reached the guild now, and I push open the doors to be hit with the usual noise and clamour.

"Gajeel! Lily!"

"Hey, you brought the babies!"

"I wanna hold them!"

"Babies! Babies!"

My jaw clenches, feeling murder in my eyes. It took me fucking ages to settle the twins off earlier! The guild quickly quietens in response. "Wake these two up," I growl, "and there will be hell to pay."

There's a few moments of silence.

Then Mira whispers, "Hi, Gajeel. Hi, Lily. How are you both? How's Levy?"

That's better. "Uh, good, I guess. Levy's…resting," I tell her, before looking round at the guild. Everyone is gathering round to get a good look at the twins. Truth be told, not many of this sorry bunch of morons have seen them yet. Mira and Master kept most of the excited crowd away while Levy was recovering and the twins gathered their strength. They've met them, as have Juvia, Jet and Droy, but everyone else is just now seeing them for the first time. You'd have thought Lucy had at least caught a glimpse, but she's been away on a job with Salamander and his dumb cat.

A few minutes later, Mira has sat me down at a table, with Lily next to me and the rest of the guild playing "pass the parcel" with Shutora and Yaje on the condition that I can rip the heads off anyone that's too rough with them or makes them cry. Thankfully, they remain sound asleep throughout the mollycoddling. Demon woman must have sensed something is wrong, because she's pushing a tankard of ale into my hands and asking me a million questions about Levy, why isn't she here, you look worried, can you tell us what's up, etc. Dammit, she's too good at this.

"Ugh, where to begin," I grumble, keeping a firm eye on where the twins are. Erza has Shutora while Cana gazes wistfully over her shoulder – there's absolutely no way that drunkard is holding my kids – and Lisanna has Yaje. "Lily reckons she's got this postnatal depression thing. She's always crying, doesn't pay much attention to the twins, isn't looking after herself properly and spends all day in bed. I can't even leave the damn house without her having a panic attack. She's a complete mess right now and I don't have a clue what the hell I'm supposed to do with her."

Mira's eyes are wide and she's covering her mouth with her hands. "This is awful!" she exclaims. "We have to do something!"

"Levy!" Jet and Droy cry, clutching at each other and sobbing like idiots.

"Yes, we would very much like the old Levy back now," Lily pipes up. "Of course, she can't help feeling like this right now, but we can help her get back to how she was if we put our heads together."

Erza joins us now, having handed Shutora over to Gray (who looks completely flummoxed and quickly passes her to an ecstatic Juvia). Is it just me or does Erza look a little sickly? "Levy must be exhausted after recovering from such a traumatic delivery, plus caring for her babies. She's so young, one of our youngest guild members, hardly any of us can imagine what she's going through. I think she needs a little time off from being mum; some time where she can relax and realise just how valued she is. Trouble is, keeping her away from the twins for a while may prove tricky…"

I remember quite vividly the result of the morning after the twins first slept through the night. It hasn't happened since, mind, but secretly I think Levy is glad of that because that morning she woke up in agony and her boobs were twice their usual size. She spent the next half hour crying in the bathroom while she desperately tried to express off the excess milk. I don't think she could go more than a few hours, but that might be enough time for whatever we plan. "Leave worrying about that bit to me," I say gruffly, waving a hand. "I gotta figure out something to cheer her up, but what? She just likes books." Jeez, I thought I knew her better than this.

"There must be more than that, Gajeel. Think!" Erza snaps. There she goes, being all bossy again, but not for long before her face pales and she rushes out of the room in a flash.

"Um…the hell's up with her?" I ask, raising my eyebrows.

Mira leans down to me, giggling. "She's been like this for a few days now. We all think she's pregnant, but time will tell!"

"You have to be kidding me."

"Nope! She and Jellal snuck off during the wedding party, so it wouldn't surprise me. Anyway though…back to the matter at hand." Mira glances over at Master, who is sitting cross-legged on the table with his arms folded and eyes closed. "What do you think, Master? Do we need to get help from Miss Porlyusica?"

He shakes his head. "No, I think this is something we can handle ourselves. I am worried though…it isn't like Levy at all to be so upset."

"Master, um…I might be able to help." A small hand from the back of the crowd raises, then Bisca's green mop of hair peeks out. "I wasn't in a good place for a while after I had Asuka. Al was amazing and he helped get me back on track…I reckon we could make the same thing work but get the whole guild to chip in."

My interest is piqued. I'd forgotten Bisca of all people would probably have some decent advice. "Go on," I nod at her, finally starting on the ale Mira gave me.

"Okay, well…it goes like this…"

…

Well, shit. I reckon she's onto something!

* * *

 _Sorry for the crappy ending. I had a really hard time with this chapter, I think Gajeel is proving tricky to write with! Hopefully what comes after will be better, when we see what Bisca comes up with. Now, I should clarify, I've no experience of postnatal depression myself so I don't really know how long it takes for people to come out of it, but I'm going to do my best. As always, please tell me what you think._

 _Tia_


	14. Chapter 14

_Please bear with me! I'm currently a bit bogged down with coursework at the moment, so this chapter is just a filler, till I can start on the proper stuff again. There is much mention of milk in this chapter! Believe me, if you're a parent, you'll understand._

* * *

Today's…okay. I think. I'm feeling okay.

Well…I nearly cried when I dropped my food on top of Yaje's head while I was feeding him, but then I was presented with chocolate by Gajeel and that shut me up pretty quickly.

He's completely changed since last week, when he stormed out with Lily, taking the twins from me. Prior to that he'd been a moody hunk of iron who kept making me cry, but when he came back from the guild a few hours later, he was so sweet and apologetic. He brought the twins over for a long feed, then after they'd been settled off to sleep, he pushed me into our ensuite for a long soak in the bath, followed by a relaxing back rub and loving words whispered to me the whole time, and soft kisses that took my breath away. I slept better that night than I had since the twins were born…that is, till they woke up demanding attention, as always. Oh, motherhood! It's relentless, I tell you. Something must have happened at the guild to make Gajeel so much nicer to me…but I don't know what. Not complaining though, it really is helping me feel better.

The twins are starting to stay awake for longer periods now and they're changing so much. Shutora is still smaller and sleepier than her brother, but she learned to smile before he did. Yaje is noisy, always gurgling away, and loves to lie on his stomach and look around at whatever is nearby. They've both gained adorable baby fat rolls now, and they look completely different from the thin, wrinkled things they were when they were born. They finally look like healthy babies. Lily says my milk must be like cream, the rate they're growing! I'm so proud, really I am.

Gajeel has told me there's a surprise in store for me later, which I'm not too excited for considering I might have to go out of the house, but he shoved me into the ensuite and told me to sort myself out, so I've taken a quick shower and now I'm sat cross-legged in my underwear in front of the floor-length mirror in our bedroom, trying to tame my hair and simultaneously balancing Shutora and Yaje on a pillow on my lap while I feed them. Being a mother to twins requires serious multitasking!

There's a soft knock on the bedroom door, which makes me frown as I turn around. Gajeel wouldn't knock and Lily is out with Carla. "Levy?" a voice calls out.

Oh, it's Lucy! I didn't hear the front door go! "Come on in, Lu," I reply, and she pops her head round, grinning wildly. I'm really pleased to see her; she's been away for six weeks on a job with Natsu and Happy, I guess she just got back today.

"How _are_ you?" she exclaims, rushing in to hug me, draping her arms over my shoulders and peering down at the twins. "Oh, Levy, they're so beautiful. I'm really out of the loop, what are their names?"

"Shutora and Yaje," I respond, leaning my head back against her. "It's so good to see you, Lu, and I've missed you, but what are you doing here? I didn't hear Gajeel letting you in."

"Oh, I did a Natsu and climbed through your bathroom window," Lucy laughs. Oh man, she loves him so much she's turning into him! "You've got a surprise later, Mira tells me! So I had to come over and see how you are."

Mira must be omniscient or something, how does she know _everything?_ "Uh, something like that. Or so I hear, anyway. I don't know…to be honest I'd rather just stay home."

"Don't be like that! You need to get out and let your hair down, you don't have to be mum all the time!"

"Yes, I do." I bite my lip, suddenly feeling quite upset. "I hate leaving them, they need me. I can't even get out of bed most days, Lu. It's so hard right now. The last thing I want is to be going out and having fun when really, I just want to curl up and cry."

"Oh, Levy…" Lucy shifts around to sit next to me, shaking her head. "Those baby blues hit you hard, huh? Come on, tell me. You can tell me anything, you know that."

That's true. Lucy is my closest friend and I love her to bits. I'm just not sure she'll understand. The twins have fallen asleep now, full and satisfied, so I unlatch them and hand Yaje over to Lucy so she can have her first baby cuddle, while I settle Shutora in her basket and return to fiddling with my hair in front of the mirror. "I just feel like nothing has gone right," I tell Lucy. "Every day since I've had the twins is painful and sluggish, and I feel like a walking milk machine, they're insatiable...I'm sore and I'm tired, I'm stressed out and bored out of my wits while Gajeel gets to head out and train, and do jobs…when I'm not frightened for my life that he's leaving the house. I'm a total mess, Lu. I don't feel like I love my babies, and what kind of mother does that make me? Sometimes this all feels like a big mistake…" Tears are pouring down my face now and my vision is wet and blurry, "and I don't know what to do."

God, what am I doing, spilling all this to her? But I can't stop now I've started, it's like it's all been bottled up for so long that I've burst. "And look at me," I sob, kneeling up and gesturing to my abdomen, distended from pregnancy, scarred from delivery. "I was never much to sing about anyway, but _this?_ I can't cope with it, it's just so ugly. I haven't let Gajeel near me at all, I can't stand to let him see me. What man would want his wife to look like this? There's no way he could find me attractive now."

I'm done. All I can do now is cry and cry, I can't get my words out without collapsing into another shaking mass of tears. Lucy has just sat and listened silently, her big eyes wet and worried as she cradles Yaje to her bosom. Slowly, she gets to her feet and crosses the room to put Yaje in the basket with Shutora. Then she kneels by my side and wipes my cheeks gently, pulling me into a hug. "I'm sorry," I whisper, burying my head in her chest. "It's all my fault. If I hadn't…if we hadn't…none of this might have happened…"

"Levy…you sure needed to let someone know, didn't you?" she murmurs as she strokes my hair. "I heard you weren't yourself, but I didn't think it had affected you this badly. Listen, we're going to help you, okay? Fairy Tail is your family and we're all here for you. Don't blame yourself, really, you've done nothing wrong. Anyone who's been through what you've been through with the twins would be upset. But they need their mother, and I bet Gajeel would love his wife to be happy again. Have you told him about any of this?" I shake my head, sniffing, and she sighs. "Please, Levy…tell him. He's your husband, you need to share things with him. You're not well, and you need to let him help you."

"He's trying," I murmur, rubbing my eyes. "I'm not ill though, Lu."

"You are, and you need to face that to be able to get better." Lucy grasps my shoulders and gives me a little shake. "Come on, Levy. You're smart. You can do this. _We_ can do this. We're going to help you."

"I'm not ill," I protest again, weakly. "I'm just tired."

"Hey, I just said you were smart. Don't go proving me wrong there. Now up you get, come on! I'll do your hair and makeup, and you find something nice to wear. Okay? You're going to have a busy day!"

* * *

Two hours later sees me freshly made up, hair neatened and styled. I tried to put on loose jeans and a hooded top but Lucy looked at me like I were dancing around with underpants on my head, and shoved me back into the ensuite to change again. There's no pleasing some people! After a few more attempts, she's satisfied with my final choice of short sleeved tunic dress ending just above the knee, and black tights with ankle boots. It was one of my favourite things to wear when I was pregnant, and it looks okay on my post-baby body too, covering all the horrible bits.

By this point, Gajeel has appeared, shirtless and sweaty from training in the back garden, wiping his face with a towel. He barely even looks surprised to see Lucy, just mutters about her picking up Natsu's bad habits as he passes by us, giving me what looks to be an approving glance. Lucy giggles uncontrollably as he heads off to shower. "Levy!" she hisses. "Oh, he could have eaten you whole! Did you see the way he just looked at you?"

"Yeah," I smile, wringing my hands. "That's with me all covered up though."

"Oh, hush, he'd think you were beautiful if your whole face were covered in scars, let alone your section scar! Right, first order of business. We're going to try and make more of that milk of yours."

I stare blankly at her. "I'm sorry?"

"Your milk! You know, the stuff you feed your babies! I saw you had some in the fridge." Before I can even ask why she was in the fridge in the first place she adds, "I stole a carton of Lily's kiwi juice. I'll replace it later."

"You really are spending too much time around Natsu," I sigh, hand on my forehead. She blushes an uncharacteristically bright shade of red and splutters, flapping her hands at me. "What?"

"Sshhhh! Later, okay! When there aren't iron dragons around to hear anything."

Something must have happened between the two of them on this job. That makes me perk up considerably, eager to know more. Lucy carries on, "Yeah, anyway…Gajeel's going to keep hold of Shutora and Yaje today, so you'll need more milk, right? How much will that amount you've already got last?"

"Um…about an hour or two, tops. It isn't a lot at all."

"We'll need you for longer than that. Here, drink this." Lucy produces a little bottle from her bosom and uncorks it, handing it over. It smells cloyingly sweet and sickly. "I'm not going to poison you, don't worry," she laughs when she sees my face. Grimacing, I drain the bottle. Ugh, it's so syrupy sweet, it's vile.

"What was this for?" I ask her, putting the empty bottle aside.

She grins at me triumphantly. "Prolactin suppressant, courtesy of the apothecary in town. You won't make any milk for, oh, the next six hours or so-"

" _WHAT?!"_

"-meaning you can spend more time with us!" she finishes, not skipping a beat.

Is she _crazy?!_ How are my babies going to be fed? "Don't worry!" she smiles. "That's why you're going to make some more now!"

"How am I supposed to make more, Lu? You just disabled my boobs!"

"With your magic, of course! You do know what makes up your milk, right?"

I rattle off a list of components in my head quickly. Yeah, I know what goes into it. But can I make it? I don't know if I can. I'll have to try now though. Leaving Lucy with the twins, I head downstairs and pull out a clean container before returning upstairs. Lucy is cooing over Shutora, who has woken and is gazing up with her bright red eyes. "Oh, look!" she gasps. "You have your daddy's eyes!"

"Yes, Gajeel's rather proud of that," I smile as I sit by her on the bed.

"How is he coping with being a dad?"

"He's been amazing. He loves them so much, he'd do anything for them."

"Gajeel's a real catch, eh?" she smirks at me.

"I heard that!" he bellows from the ensuite over the noise of the shower. Lucy collapses in a fit of giggles in response and I roll my eyes. These two always bounce off each other, but he likes her more than he'll admit.

When she calms, Lucy points to the container in my hand. "Okay, let's see what you can do."

This might go disastrously. I apologise in advance if I end up flooding the room! I close my eyes and hold the container between my knees as I lift two fingers and draw them smoothly through the air, tracing invisible symbols. A tingling in my hands indicates my magic gathering in response, and I let it go with a murmured "Solid Script: Milk!"

A soft, steady stream meets my ears followed by a squeal from Lucy. "You did it!" she exclaims, clapping her hands. And I have! The word hovers in front of me, a pale white substance flowing from it into the container. Within just a few seconds, there's enough to last the twins all day. "That was amazing!" Lucy cheers. "Well done, Levy!"

That was actually pretty cool, and I feel myself smiling more than I have done in weeks, a tremendous weight feeling like it's been lifted off my chest.

Lucy throws an arm around me and leans her head against mine. "You look so much more relaxed now," she tells me.

"I feel it," I reply. "Lucy…can you carry on being all blunt and bossy, please?"

"Huh?"

"It's…it's helping. Gajeel just tiptoes around me and doesn't push me, but when you tell me what to do…I feel like I can do anything. If I really am ill, then I need pushing, right?"

"Damn straight! Now, let's get that milk in the fridge and let's go, we have to meet the girls."

"Girls?"

"Yep! Me, you, Erza, Cana and Juvia are going out for coffee and shopping. We've got lots of news to share with you!"

* * *

An hour later, we've all gathered outside a café overlooking the canal. It's a lovely bright day, if a little chilly. Cana is her usual tipsy self, Erza looks oddly pale, and Juvia is practically glowing. Lucy has gone to get all of us drinks while we seat ourselves at the outside tables. "So, Gajeel's playing babysitter today?" Cana asks as she swigs from a flask.

"Cana!" Erza glares. "He is their father, not their babysitter."

"Calm your tits, Miss Morning Sickness."

" _Cana!"_

I gape at Erza, gobsmacked. "Erza! You're pregnant?"

"What? No! I've just had a bug recently!" she protests.

"What, for three weeks?" Cana raises an eyebrow at Erza and smirks. She turns a shade of red that could rival her hair and facepalms while Juvia pats her shoulder.

"I don't know," Erza murmurs. "I haven't taken a test yet. But I feel absolutely rotten and I'm so tired and sore. I'll…I'll take a test tonight."

"Take your time, Erza," Juvia tells her softly. "Juvia thinks this must be hard on you. Does Jellal know?"

"W-Why would he need to know?"

I laugh, leaning back in my chair. "Give over, Erza!"

"Yeah, we all know you snuck off with Jellal after Levy's wedding," Lucy chimes, startling us. She's holding a tray full of drinks. "Oh, I heard enough," she adds before Erza can protest, "and I knew something was up the minute you asked for lemon and ginger tea! So here we go…lemon and ginger for Erza…Irish coffee for Cana…tea for Levy…matcha for Juvia…and mocha for me. There we go!" She sets down all our drinks and settles down next to me with a grin. "So…Erza…you and Jellal?"

"Don't, Lucy," she groans dejectedly, head on the table. "I haven't seen him since. It will probably be months till he shows his face here again…I'm so embarrassed…"

Cana laughs as she tops up her coffee with whatever is in her flask. "He probably feels the same way. My god, you two were so wasted! You were giving me a run for my money. Still, it was a long time coming. The way he looks at you, he was going to explode if you two didn't fuck soon."

"C-Cana!"

"Okay, let's move onto Juvia then," Cana winks, swivelling to Juvia who stares at her with wide eyes over the top of her mug. "A little bird tells me something has changed in your love life too!"

Oh god, Juvia isn't pregnant too, is she? We're all going to flood Fairy Tail with babies at this rate. She catches my eye and shakes her head wildly. "No babies for Juvia!" she says quickly. "No, Juvia is not pregnant."

"But something has happened?" I ask.

"Well, yes…after the wedding…well, after you collapsed, Juvia stayed with Gajeel to support and comfort him. He went to see you after Carla said it was okay, so Juvia went home. Juvia was upset, and Lily walked her part of the way, but then…then…" She blushes violently, steam practically erupting from her ears. "Gray-sama…Gray-sama was waiting for Juvia at Fairy Hills."

Erza lifts her head, mouth open. "You didn't let him in, did you?" Juvia blushes deeper in response, saying nothing. "Well…I suppose I was too inebriated to keep track of things. I'll think of a fitting punishment for you later."

"Of course, Erza." Juvia sips her matcha, regaining her composure somewhat.

"Go on," I urge, eager to hear more.

"Gray-sama had had too much to drink, so Juvia brought him inside to sleep it off. He…he got hold of Juvia and tried to kiss her…"

Cana whistles appreciatively. "Took him long enough! What did you think?"

"Juvia didn't let him. Juvia would prefer Gray-sama to be sober and for him to be in control of his inhibitions. So Juvia got nervous and turned to water and hid till he fell asleep, then Juvia went to bed."

"Oh, Juvia! What were you doing? You could have got away with anything!"

"She's not done," Lucy giggles. "Let her carry on, it gets good. Go on, Juvia."

Even her ears are red now, her blush is so deep. "In the morning Juvia took Gray-sama some breakfast, and he was very grateful. Juvia let him take a shower and um…snuck in and hid amongst the water."

"Juvia!"

"Oh my goodness!"

"What were you thinking?!"

"Did he catch you?"

She dips her head. "Um…yes."

"What happened?" I gasp. Oh, I'm so glad I came out now.

"He wasn't angry. He…he didn't seem to mind. Juvia was very embarrassed, but he told Juvia to come out and…and when she did…" She suddenly utters a shrill laugh that makes us all jump. "Now Juvia let him kiss her! Over and over! Oh, Juvia was in heaven!"

Juvia then proceeds to launch into one of her fantastical and incredibly sensationalised fantasies while we all laugh, nod and sip our drinks. Apparently they had a mad make-out session in the shower followed by "the most amazing, wild, passionate love-making," as she put it, all over her apartment, followed by cuddling and Gray declaring his love for her. You have to laugh really! Juvia really does let her imagination run away with her sometimes.

"Okay, so…" Erza pipes up, warming her hands around her mug. "How much of that _actually_ happened, Juvia?"

"Um…just the shower. Gray-sama really did kiss Juvia. But that was it."

"Are you together now?" Lucy asks.

"Juvia doesn't know. We have just shared a few kisses. Nothing has been said for definite yet."

Goodness! Everyone is hooking up now! I suppose it's to be expected eventually, with our guild members being as close as we are…and the amount of alcohol involved in day-to-day activities. Gray's been so obviously kidding himself about Juvia for heaven knows how long, we were close to taking bets on when he'd crack.

I think Juvia has completely exhausted herself of speech now and she pulls her coat a little tighter as if self-conscious, huddling down and concentrating on her matcha. Cana quite clearly wants to press her for more, but Erza stops her. "No, Juvia is done now, Cana. Leave her be." Her eyes glitter wickedly as she turns to Lucy. "Now, Lucy! You have something to spill too, don't you?"

Her face flushes, but she laughs softly. "Um, yeah, as a matter of fact…"

"Oh god," Cana exclaims, "what did Natsu do to you?"

More like what _didn't_ Natsu do to her. These two are so in love with each other I wouldn't be surprised if they've been at it for days! Lucy drums her fingers on the table thoughtfully while she frowns, seemingly trying to find the words. "Well…while we were out on this job, things really kind of sparked. Like, there's always been some kind of feeling there, but nothing I could be too sure of. But we really felt it when we were on the job. Natsu got pretty beat up at one point, so I sent Happy off to get some healing herbs and I started patching him up. He thanked me…with a kiss. Quite a lot of kisses...I lost count."

I can't help but gasp. "Oh, Lucy! Finally!"

Lucy purse her lips, but she's smiling as well. "I'll be honest, neither of us knew what we were doing, but it was…I dunno, fun?" She sighs. "That damn cat though, he just had to catch us in the act. I had to threaten him with Virgo's punishments to stay quiet, but knowing him, he's already told Carla and Lily, so Gajeel will be having a field day once Lily tells _him._ I know Carla won't care."

"I can threaten Gajeel?" I suggest with a small laugh.

"You, short stuff?" Cana raises an eyebrow. "You, threaten that big hunk of muscle?"

"Hey, he does actually listen to me!" I sigh. "Just because I'm small doesn't mean he treats me like a kid."

"Yes, so I heard," Erza winks.

"Erza!"

"What, what?" Lucy demands. "What happened?"

"Oh, um, nothing! Really, Lu, it was nothing!"

"Tell us!"

"Fine, then Erza will tell us!"

Oh ground, please swallow me whole right now. My whole face must be burning right now. "Um…" I stammer, "Gajeel and I, we…we snuck off when Erza and Jellal did, and, uh…we were in adjacent rooms, so we could, um…hear each other."

Erza nearly drops her mug. "Hey, including me was _not_ part of this!" she gasps, while Cana and Lucy fall about laughing. Juvia just blinks at me a few times, looking a little shocked.

And now the sadness is setting in again. I'm so mad at myself! The whole time I've been with the girls I've felt…normal! Like myself again. But as soon as I remember our antics in the storage closet, I'm flooded with guilt and shame. Suddenly I can't stand to be around any of them, and I shove my chair back, fighting tears. "Excuse me," I whisper before hurrying away down the canal. Once I'm a safe distance away, I sit down by the waterside, sniffing and wiping my eyes, no doubt smearing my makeup.

I'm so stupid! Why did I even bring it up? Why am I blaming myself for what happened? Why can't I accept it wasn't my fault? My babies are here, they're alive. Surely we couldn't have caused my collapse…right?

I don't know. And that's what I can't move on from.

* * *

 _Because every group of girls get together over drinks and talk sex, right?_

 _Cana I find hard to write about, so I didn't really involve her much in the story here, just as reaction material, I guess. I bet anything though she'd be a perfect match for Bacchus._

 _As always, please tell me what you think._

 _Tia_


	15. Chapter 15

_Hi all. I'm still a little bogged down with work at the moment, but mostly, I just have horrendous writer's block. This was the best I could knock out! I promise it'll be back to the lemony, smutty goodness next chapter._

 _Added disclaimer: in addition to not owning Fairy Tail, I also do not own the lyrics to the song below, they are owned by Lady Antebellum and Paul Worley._

* * *

Oh god, Lu is right. I'm not well. What am I even doing to myself? To my husband? I can't carry on like this.

It's only been a few minutes since I left the girls behind, but I've dried my eyes now and I'm ready to face them again. I have to tackle this head-on. And it was only a bit of banter, right? I can handle that. I can!

"Hey, baby blue," Cana calls, being the first to notice me approach. "You okay?"

"Yeah," I reply. "Sorry about that. My head's been all over the place lately."

Lucy gazes at me sympathetically, reaching out to take my hand as I near the table. She gently tugs me down, back into my chair, and pushes a cup towards me. "I got you another drink," she explains. "You look like you need it."

"Thanks, Lu." I sip it gratefully.

"I'm so sorry, Levy," Erza murmurs. "I didn't mean to upset you like that."

"It's not you, Erza. It's…it's just…I've not been right since the twins arrived. The same thing keeps going through my head; that nothing would have gone wrong if Gajeel and I hadn't done what we did. It sounds stupid, it really does, but…it weighs on me so heavily."

Juvia pats my hand gently. "You experienced a traumatic event, Levy. It's only natural that your mind tries to find something to blame for it. We can't tell you how to feel, but we can be there for you and support you."

I smile at her kind words. "Thank you, Juvia. You're always so wise. No wonder Gajeel keeps you close."

She blushes furiously. "Gajeel is Juvia's best friend. Juvia wants him and his family to be happy."

"Well, he's certainly a damn sight nicer to you than he is to the rest of us!" Cana laughs, then pauses a moment. "Well, Mira too, I guess…though that's because she gives him booze and plays music with him."

"He's changed so much," Lucy says thoughtfully. "It's odd, isn't it? Looking back on it now…I'd never have imagined him as the type to settle down, but he really does love you so much, Levy."

I'm grinning like a fool now as I try to hide my expression behind my mug. I'm just so glad that everyone has accepted him. Well, I think Jet and Droy will always be a little reserved, but that's something none of us can change. "I'm just being stupid, right?" I ask tentatively. "Am I overthinking this?"

"Course you are!" Cana exclaims. "Come on, Levy! You're smarter than this. Girls have sex when they're pregnant all the time, unless there's a good reason why they can't, and Wendy would have told you if that were the case. So stop blaming yourself, sometimes things just go wrong for no reason." She pauses to take a long drink from her flask. "Besides, you must have done it before, right? No problems then?"

I shake my head. "None. It was fine." My face flushes and I can feel the heat burning off my cheeks. Cana is so candid, but I've never had any partners before Gajeel, so it's not like I'm used to talking about my sex life with other people.

Even Erza's interest is piqued now, and she's normally a little more reserved. "Tell us, Levy. You might as well, or Cana's going to hound you for days…and I think you could handle the interrogation better than Juvia."

"We don't even know how you guys got together!" said hounder grins. "Spill it, blue!"

Ah man…I'm well and truly stuck now. I look towards Lucy for help, but she just gives me a sly smirk. "Um…" I stammer, "after the Grand Magic Games…it was during the celebrations at the palace. We went for a walk and ended up in the gardens."

Cana nearly spits out her mouthful of booze. "Holy hell, Levy! You fucked in the palace gardens?"

"Yep."

"Levy, you do surprise me," remarks Erza. Juvia says nothing, just stares with those huge bush-baby eyes of hers. Erza looks towards Lucy. "You knew?"

"Yeah," she replies. "She made me promise not to say anything though, it wasn't my information to share. I was there when she took the pregnancy test as well."

"Did you get pregnant the first time, Levy?" Erza asks.

"Yeah. And when he found out, he freaked out pretty bad. Remember how he left on a job for ages? Yeah, that was why."

"You must have felt so isolated," Juvia says softly. "Were you okay?"

"I was alright. A bit mad at him, I suppose. Then obviously, I broke my ankle, he came back, and you all found out we were having twins. He didn't really come round to the idea of us having kids till Miss Porlyusica did a scan on me and told us what we were having…I think seeing them there helped him come to terms with it, that he was going to be a father."

"Yeah, yeah, that's all good," interrupts Cana, "but we're missing out the best bits! How good is he? Is he what your sappy romance novels shape it all up to be?"

"Better," I giggle. "He's quite dominant, but doesn't ignore my needs. I mean, like Juvia, I've nothing to compare it to, but honestly, he's incredible." I shoot a sideways look at Lucy who is watching me with a gleeful expression. "And just you wait, Lu! When you and Natsu finally get up to something, we'll be interrogating you next!"

"Hoo boy," she mutters, putting a hand over her eyes.

God, I love these guys. I feel better again, like I hadn't cried at all. We sit and laugh about sex for a while longer, like the oh-so-mature ladies we are, then head off to the shopping district, where of course, Lucy tries to get us to spend way too much money on clothes, like she always does. I come out with some more headbands and a lovely, but rather skimpy, nightdress; whether I'll feel confident enough to wear it is up for debate. It looks like the sort of thing that would end up on the floor in 5 seconds, and I've been too nervous since having the twins for us to be intimate. I'm healed now though, so…who knows? I might be ready again.

I _did_ of course spend way too much on books. I've enough to fill several libraries, I swear, but you can never have too many books! Lucy let us drop off all our stuff at her apartment and Cana, Erza and Juvia head off back outside, by which point we've been out for about four hours. Normally by now, I'd be feeling really sore and uncomfortable, but thanks to that strange potion that Lucy gave me, I feel fine. Missing my babies a lot though! "You'll see them soon," Lucy assures me. "Don't worry so much, you trust Gajeel to take care of them, right?"

"…Yeah, I guess. It's just odd not being with them for so long."

"I bet they're doing just fine," she beams in response. "Come on now, we've got to head to the park and meet up with the girls again."

The park? I wonder what's going on. Lucy grabs my hand and steers me out the door again, despite my questions. Maybe this has something to do with the "surprise" Mira is planning.

* * *

It's not so bright outside now, the sun dimming slightly. All of Magnolia is lit with a dusky red glow and it's really quite pretty! Lucy is keeping a firm grip on my hand as she drags me along through the streets. "You can let go now, Lu!" I protest, wiggling my arm.

"Oh, sorry!" she laughs, releasing me. "I guess you aren't gonna run off."

"No. I just want to find out what's going on and then go home, I'm worn out!"

"Not too much longer, Levy. Don't worry."

We turn onto the path leading towards the park and I peer around, trying to spot any out of place occurrences. Nothing out of the ordinary! Well, except for the little brightly coloured squares on each lamp post. Wait, coloured squares?

"Hey, Lu, look," I frown, approaching the nearest lamp post. "What are these?" They look like sticky notes, the sort that litter the pages of my books when I'm out of bookmarks or need to place a reference.

 ** _Your infectious smile makes everyone around you happy._**

Um…okay? What's all this about? Lucy looks at the note over my shoulder with a raised eyebrow. "Maybe the others are similar," she suggests. "Let's take a look."

So we go to the next one, which reads –

 ** _When I'm sad, you're the first to cheer me up._**

I think I spot a running theme here.

 ** _You have grown into a wonderful lady that our guild can be proud of._**

Hang on a sec…

 ** _You welcomed me with open arms when I was alone and scared. That meant the world to me._**

 ** _I can't look at a book now without wondering whether you'd like to read it too._**

These are about…these are about me!

"Lu…" I murmur, turning to her. She's holding each of the notes, gazing at me with surprised eyes. "Did you know about this?"

She shakes her head. "Not a thing! Let's carry on though. I wanna see the rest of these."

 ** _Your brains balances out the brawn in the guild, and we'd be lost without you._**

 ** _Thanks for putting up with us all these years._**

 ** _We all love you more than words can say or actions can express._**

 ** _Please don't cry. We're all here for you._**

 ** _I'm proud to call you a member of our family in Fairy Tail._**

 ** _All this time, you've proven that the deadliest things come in the most unassuming forms!_**

 ** _It's been a privilege to grow up alongside you._**

I…don't even know what to say. Tears cloud my vision and my heart clenches painfully in my chest, but it's a good pain, a happy pain. Really, I had no idea that my guildmates felt this way about me. They're so sweet and kind. Another note appears under my nose, held by a grinning Lucy. "I just made my own," she explains. "Had to turn one over for a blank piece, but yeah, here you go!"

 ** _Our love of reading brought us together as friends. Someday, I hope our adventures can be written into our very own story._**

"Aw, Lu…thank you," I sniffle. She gives a laugh and throws her arms around me in a tight hug, pressing my face into her bosom. "Are there any more?" I ask in a muffled voice.

"Erm…yeah, a few more, and…oh, and one on that tree there."

 ** _Sweet, kind and smart. You're just amazing._**

 ** _Fairy Tail hasn't been the same without you around! Please come back soon._**

 ** _You have brought light into the lives of many. Such actions are not easily forgotten._**

Oh, I wish I knew who wrote these! I don't recognise the handwriting of most of them. Clutching the last few notes to my chest, I slowly approach the very last one, heart hammering. This is the tree… _that_ tree. I still get shivers every now and then when I look at it. But all that happened so long ago. It's okay now.

 ** _My worst memories were made here. But together, from those, we made, and continue to make, the best memories of my life._**

Fresh tears form in my eyes as I smile softly. "This one is obvious," I remark, adding it to the pile in my hand.

"Gajeel?" Lucy asks, to which I nod. "Aw, he's so sweet when he isn't beating people up."

"He's not that bad," I laugh. Somewhere nearby, the soft melody of a piano begins to float through the cool air. "But…he is sweet. Oh, Lu…he must be out of his mind with worry for me right now, after all my ups and downs recently. I don't want to put anyone else through that…"

"Well, look at all your notes!" she exclaims, pointing to the pile in my hand. "See how much everyone loves you? They want you to be happy, Levy. You've already figured out what went wrong, now we can start moving past it. Now come on," she grabs my arm and tugs, "I wanna see where that noise is coming from."

Rounding the corner, we find the source. The whole of the guild is gathered in a large clearing, setting up what looks to be the biggest picnic I've ever seen, while Mira sits nearby at the upright piano that they've somehow managed to drag out here. Her fingers dance expertly up and down the keys and a light, lilting song flows from her throat. She's always been amazingly talented with music.

"Hey, guys!" Cana shouts, waving us over, usual bottle of booze in her hand. "Took you long enough!"

"What _is_ all this?" I ask as we approach her. She just flashes me a grin and pats the space next to her, which I flop down into. "Was this all for me, or…?"

"Sort of," Erza pipes up from Cana's other side. She's got a plateful of strawberry cake and doesn't look nearly as sickly as she did earlier. "We wanted to organise something to make you feel better, then it just descended into a full-scale mass picnic. Which I, for one, am not complaining about, provided there's lots of cake!"

"I honestly had no idea about any of this!" laughs Lucy as she joins us. "Mira just said to bring Levy here, but wow, what a great idea!"

This is wonderful. Everyone is so happy, sat around and chatting, tucking into food and sharing drinks. I can't see Gajeel anywhere, but Juvia pops up with Shutora and Yaje in her arms, beaming at them as she hands them over to me one by one for cuddles and way too many tears on my part. It's only been a few hours, but it's the longest I've been away from them and I missed them terribly. "Have you had them long?" I ask Juvia after I've dried my eyes.

"Only about ten minutes," she replies, bouncing Yaje on her knee and smiling at him as he smiles and burbles in response. "Gajeel went to get his guitar…he said Mira has roped him in to play a few songs with her."

"Oh dear," I laugh. "I hope he doesn't make anyone's ears bleed."

"Well, you know Mira…she likes having some musical company, no matter what anyone else thinks." We swap babies and I kiss Yaje's nose, cuddling him to my chest. "How do you feel, Levy?" Juvia asks. "Juvia thought you might be a little overwhelmed."

"No, I'm fine. It's so nice that everyone pitched in the way they did…I'm tired though, so I might end up crashing out on the grass! I hope Gajeel comes back soon."

Jet and Droy join us now, sliding in either side and giving me a group hug. "How are you?" Droy asks worriedly. "We've all been really concerned for you."

"You could have talked to us," Jet chimes in. "You know we'll always be here for you, Levy."

"I'm sorry, guys," I murmur ashamedly. "I've not been right in the head recently. If I could have brought myself to leave the house, I'd have been with you in a heartbeat, you know that, but…I guess I'm just not well enough right now to think properly."

"You're too hard on yourself." Jet puts an arm round my shoulders and I lean into him with a happy sigh. "The guild isn't the same without you around, Levy! None of us want to push you before you're ready, but it would be great to have you back. Shadow Gear isn't Shadow Gear if it's just two of us. Soon as you feel up to it, we'll head out on a job, just say the word." Droy nods in agreement as he sneaks some cake out from under Erza's nose.

"What about the babies?" I frown.

"I reckon half the guild is dying to babysit them! Please take your time though. We can wait as long as you need us to."

Oh, these guys. God, I love them so much. We end up in another playful group hug before they scoop up the twins to coo over them happily. Seeing them enjoy Shutora and Yaje is wonderful, it really is. I hope someday, both of them can find love and have children themselves.

The gentle strum of a guitar string makes me turn around, looking for the source eagerly. Gajeel's come back, sitting cross-legged on top of Mira's piano, tongue between his teeth as he fiddles with the tuning pegs on a deep brown acoustic guitar, one I don't often see him use. He glances over at me and gives me a questioning eyebrow raise, to which I respond with a smile and a wave. He grins back, then leans down to murmur a few words to Mira. She nods at him and rotates her wrists a few times in preparation to play again. The rest of the guild are looking at one another with apprehension, presumably awaiting their eardrums being shredded, but I think they're going to be pleasantly surprised at how much Gajeel has improved. If he's singing, that is. Mira might just want him to play along. I guess we'll find out!

"Hey, Levy!" Mira calls, waving at me. "Good to see you! Are you okay?"

"Great, Mira! Thank you so much for all this," I reply. "I can't believe you all came together for me."

"Well, it was Bisca's idea!" she beams, indicating our green-haired guildmate, who blushes and hides her face behind her hat. "We're all just glad you're out of the house and socialising again. It's been too long since we had a group outing, so let's make the most of it! We're going to play something a little different...I hope you're all ready to be shocked!"

Considering Mira's forte is heavy rock, and Gajeel's is…whatever the hell it is… heaven knows what they're going to come out with! Gajeel gently taps the body of his guitar rhythmically, counting them in, then they begin to play.

Oh...it's so peaceful. I can imagine a country vibe behind it. Mira rocks her head from side to side as she plays gentle chords and short scales. She opens her mouth and instead of the powerful voice we're all used to, out comes a soft, romantic melody.

 _Lying here with you so close to me_

 _It's hard to fight these feelings when it feels so hard to breathe_

 _Caught up in this moment_

 _Caught up in your smile_

She's always been an amazing singer, and we all love to listen to her perform. The whole guild is silent, watching in awe. Then Gajeel takes a deep breath and all eyes are on him.

 _I've never opened up to anyone_

 _So hard to hold back when I'm holding you in my arms_

Oh. My. God.

Wow.

 _We don't need to rush this_

 _Let's just take it slow_

Be still, my beating heart! I've never heard such a voice come out of that husband of mine. I think my jaw might be on the floor, as is everyone else's. How did I not notice he'd improved _this_ much?! I really have been out of it recently…wow. Just wow. They're singing together now, flowing and melding together in a way I never thought would be possible.

 _Just a kiss on your lips in the moonlight_

 _Just a touch of the fire burning so bright_

 _And I don't wanna mess this thing up_

 _I don't wanna push too far_

 _Just a shot in the dark that you just might_

 _Be the one I've been waiting for my whole life_

 _So baby I'm alright_

 _With just a kiss goodnight_

Okay, that's it, I think I'm officially going into cardiac arrest falling in love with Gajeel all over again!

* * *

 _Well, that's it for now, folks! I've had this bit about Gajeel and Mira singing for Levy rattling around in my head for ages now, so I'm glad I've managed to at least attempt to write it. My writer's block right now is terrible though and I'm really struggling. You can tell I'm not used to doing plot related stuff! I need to just stick to smut xD_

 _I don't know if it's OOC for Gajeel, but I like to think he has a good relationship with Mira, so I can definitely see these two playing together...and Mira plying him with booze and iron to sing soppy love songs. Why not, eh? It's an AU at the end of the day! Any excuse to include one of my favourite songs. Which is odd for me as a huge fan of mostly J-rock and symphonic metal. We all have our quirks, I suppose._

 _I'd say keep the reviews coming, but I actually get super nervous whenever I get the email to say I have a new review. It takes me hours to read them! Oh, to hell with it, of course please tell me what you think._

 _Tia_


	16. Chapter 16

_Hey guys. I've been so utterly swamped with work that it's been hard to write anything much, but eventually I managed it. Please note this chapter contains sexual content! Delicate eyes be warned._

* * *

I reckon Levy's all cried out after today. Cried a little myself when I saw just how overcome she was by the songs I played with Mira. But she looked damn happy at the same time, so it's all good. I haven't felt this relaxed about her in a long time...well, I guess the last time I felt this way was at the wedding.

It's pretty dark now and most of the guild have retreated back to the hall for their nightly drinking and fighting. I wanted to go with them, but Levy held me back, whispering a few words to Lucy that I half picked up. "Drop off what now, shrimp?" I ask as Lucy runs off to join Salamander and his dumb cat. I flop down onto the picnic blanket, brushing aside a few stray bits of food.

"Oh, just my shopping from earlier," Levy replies, moving to join me. I move my legs apart so she can sit between them, her back to my chest, and she leans back against me with a little sigh as I wrap my arms around her securely.

Lily has taken Shutora and Yaje home to put them to bed, giving us some quiet time alone. Juvia was last to leave, making sure both of us were alright before hurrying off after Gray. They are _so_ fucking, I can smell him all over her. It's about time, anyway. I was sick of seeing her pining for him. So now it's just me and Levy, breathing in the cool night air, enjoying each other's warmth.

"I'm sorry," she says quietly after a period of silence.

"Huh? What for?"

"Well...for everything. I can't imagine you've enjoyed me very much recently."

"That's putting it mildly," I reply drily. She thumps my thigh with her fist, rolling her eyes. "Whoa there, shrimp," I chuckle, "I'm joking. You've not been yourself, and it's been hard, but I get the feeling things will be easier from here on out. So don't worry about what's happened. I understand, okay?"

Levy leans her head back further so she can look up at me. "You've been amazing, you know, Gajeel. Putting up with me and looking after the twins. I think I really would have gone crazy without you here."

"I'm not going anywhere." My arms tighten around her. "You're my woman, my wife. You know I'd rather die than let you suffer anything alone." She smiles, blinking rapidly, then reaches a hand up to brush away the tears glittering on her eyelashes. "But," I continue, "I need you to start talking to me. No more of this staying in bed crap for days, alright? I know you'll have poured your heart out to Lucy, but I need to know how you're feeling as well."

She nods sadly. "I know. I'm sorry. I'm going to try harder...today has proven to me that everyone is still here for me, and I think...with that, I can start to get better."

"Glad to hear it."

God, it feels good to have Levy content and happy again. She lets out a quiet moan as I lean down to nuzzle her neck, pressing kisses wherever I can reach. She even smells happy. I fucking love it. Reaching up to cup her cheek, I turn her face towards mine and draw her in to kiss her parted lips.

Levy moans again, muffled by my mouth as I try desperately not to pillage hers, willing myself to stay slow and gentle with her. But she's the one turning the tables now, which I didn't expect at all given her recent reluctance for closeness. Her body turns in my arms and she presses herself against me, moving to straddle my lap. "Easy, shrimp," I laugh as she attacks my lips. "We _are_ out in the open, you know."

She giggles. "Didn't stop us the first time."

"Yeah, well...we're parents now. We gotta behave ourselves a little more. However..." I lean in to lightly tug on her earlobe with my teeth, making her shudder. "I can't promise I'll behave once we're at home. If you're up to it, of course."

Not gonna lie, I never thought "blue balls" were a thing till I experienced it myself. It's been months since we've had sex and while I obviously understand why completely, it doesn't make me any less needy for her. Hell, she barely lets me touch her most days and I'm lucky to get a kiss, so for her to be in my lap right now, practically devouring me, it's a good sign.

"I want to try," Levy sighs, leaning her head against my shoulder. "I'm just...I'm just a bit nervous, that's all. I didn't want to till now, but now I feel like this, I'm worried I'll sink back into depression as quickly as I came out of it. So, um...please..." She pulls back and kisses me desperately, "take me home and make love to me before anything else happens."

Don't need to tell me twice! If I was hard when she sat on me, I'm fucking rock solid now. I tip Levy off my lap and she laughs, pulling me to my feet. It's been too long since I've heard her laugh like that. "You'd better hope the twins stay asleep for a while," I tell her as she tugs me along, "because I don't plan on letting you leave the bed for a good while."

Oh lord, please let them sleep through the night again.

* * *

Half an hour later, after checking in with Lily and the twins, Levy disappears into the ensuite to remove her makeup while I strip down to my boxers and climb into bed, waiting for her and keeping an ear out for the twins in case they wake up. "Do you think Levy has enjoyed herself today?" Lily asks me, curled up on the edge of the bed.

"Yeah, she seems pretty happy," I shrug. "Hopefully she'll be back to her old self soon. I'm not gonna push her though, she needs to take her time."

"Indeed. It has been good to see her smiling again. Now, I gather you two want some privacy, so I'll make myself scarce. Enjoy the rest of your night, Gajeel."

I smirk, waving a hand at him. "See ya, Lily." He gives a deep chuckle and gets up to leave the room, closing the door behind him. I love that guy. I reckon both me and Levy would have gone nuts without his help recently, and he's always respected our need for privacy...though that probably came from one too many times of him walking in on us by accident. Sorry, Lily. Probably scarred him for life.

"Has Lily gone now?" Levy asks from the ensuite, sticking her head round the door. Her hair is piled up on top of her head and there's a streak of stray mascara down her face as she wipes off the last of her makeup. She looks absolutely adorable like that. I nod at her and she smiles, retreating again. "Um...I have something to show you," she calls. "Could you...turn the lights down though? I'm nervous."

"Yeah, sure." I reach out to tap the base of the lamp next to the bed, dimming it. "What are you nervous about, shrimp? It's only me."

"...This."

She steps out and...

Ho...ly...fuck.

Instant blood rush to the nethers. Fuck me, she looks amazing. A deep red nightdress clings to her curves and she has some sort of silky cardigan thing on in the same colour. I'm no good with women's clothes but I _really_ like this. I might be considerate and not rip it to shreds taking it off her. Maybe. If I can control myself long enough. I must have been staring wordlessly a little too long, because she starts to look worried. "Um...what do you think?" she asks shyly, bringing her arms up over her chest.

I raise my eyebrows at her, smirking. "What do I think? Dammit, shrimp, you're hot. Get yourself over here so I can have a better look at you." I gesture to her and slide out from under the covers to meet her as she reaches the foot of the bed. She looks so incredibly self-conscious, but when I lean up to kiss her, she seems to relax a little. After a few moments I pull away and sit back on my heels to admire her. "You pick this up today?" I ask, running my hands over her hips. She nods, swallowing hard. "I love it, Levy. You look gorgeous, so fucking sexy."

"You...really think so?" Her eyes close in response to my touch.

"Definitely." I continue exploring her, feeling the fabric of her dress sliding like liquid between my fingers as I map her delicious curves. Her hands reach down to grip my shoulders and she presses herself against my palms, whimpering softly. She's so nervous I can feel her trembling, but when I look up at her to ask if she needs me to stop, she pushes against me again, willing me to keep going.

Gradually, I move upwards, tracing my fingers over Levy's breasts and enjoying the sudden intake of breath from her. "Is that okay?" I ask her.

"Yes," she whispers, arching her back. She lifts a leg and eases herself onto the bed, coming to straddle my lap like she did in the park earlier; her arms wind round my shoulders and her lips descend on mine softly as my hands work their way under her dress to squeeze her backside. She feels so soft and pliant beneath my touch, her lips hot and hungry. A moan escapes her when I move my hands back up, exploring her sensitive skin. Within a few seconds, I've tugged the cardigan from her shoulders and dropped it to the floor as I pull my mouth from hers and move to her neck, sliding down the straps of her dress along the way. Gods, her skin tastes sweet.

The dress crumples into a scarlet heap at Levy's waist, leaving her bare to me. Oh, fuck. She's so fucking sexy. "Oh...um..." she gasps, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Why are you covering yourself?" I ask, shaking my head. "I like seeing you naked. Don't hide away."

"I'm just so deflated and gross, Gajeel. Why would you like to see me like this?"

"Because..." I gently prise her hands away and interlock her fingers with mine, "I fell for you, not just your body. I don't care how you look. I'll love you no matter what. So don't hide away from me, got it?"

Slowly, biting her lip, she nods. Honestly, women. Levy could look like anything and I'd probably still want to fuck her into next week. And really, she isn't that bad. I can see how worried she is as I rake over her body with a needy gaze. She has stretch marks on her hips, her breasts have lost some volume and her stomach is soft, but she's still the most beautiful thing in the world to me. "You look wonderful," I murmur as I dip my head to take a pert nipple into my mouth, licking softly. Her groan of pleasure sends a hot pulse of longing through my body, intensifying my need for her.

She's writhing on my lap now, rubbing her core against me in response to my eager mouth. "I can't take it!" she cries out, throwing her head back. Her hands tangle in my hair and tighten painfully, but it's a good pain, one that turns me on immeasurably. I give her nipple one last lick for good measure and raise my head to gauge her expression. She doesn't look scared, eyes wide and full of anticipation. "You alright, Levy?" I ask gently.

Levy nods slowly, loosening her grip on my hair. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"Do you want to carry on?"

Her sudden warm smile is enough to tell me how she's feeling. One quick manoeuvre and we're flipped over so she rests with her back on the mattress, head propped up by pillows, while I lean down above her and capture her lips in a long, deep kiss. I can't help but sigh and groan against her lips when her hands roam, her nails dragging ever so slightly over my back and chest. Feeling her touching me again is amazing...damn, I've missed it. I've missed our intimacy. The rough exterior the rest of the guild sees is practically tossed aside when Levy and I come together like this; I need her, I crave the closeness, feeling her skin against mine, hearing her gasp with pleasure and calling my name. Yeah, I'm a soft arse...but only for her. For my family.

I start to pull Levy's nightdress down, away from her waist, but she freezes suddenly and pulls back, shaking her head. "What's wrong?" I frown. She splays a hand out over her lower belly, tears pooling in her eyes.

It's her scar. She doesn't want me to see it. And I haven't, not at all, this whole time. She refused to let me tend to her, having Wendy do it instead. It hurt, not being able to care for her, but I understood. The trauma broke her, and I wasn't going to make it worse. But now...she's healed now, yet she still can't stand for me to look upon the incision that saved the lives of our kids. "We should stop," I sigh. "You're not ready."

"No...I'm ready," she replies shakily. "Just...be gentle with me. Please."

"Of course."

Her hand rises to touch my chest and her eyes bore into mine as I slowly start to inch her dress down again. She whimpers as more of her skin is exposed, but doesn't push me away, continuing to stare up at me, chest heaving enticingly.

Sweet merciful gods. She isn't wearing any underwear. My cock practically throbs with delight at the sight; my gorgeous young wife spread out on our bed, fully exposed to me. The scent of arousal emanating from her is almost overwhelming. "Oh, fuck...Levy..." I groan, feeling myself needing her more by the second.

Her scar lies in plain view along the very bottom of her stomach, a long vertical line of purplish tissue, striking against the paleness of her skin. It's healed well. I can see Levy is itching to cover it with her hands again. "It's horrible, isn't it?" she whispers.

"Nah." I shake my head. "It's a part of you. The twins are alive because of it and so are you."

Her eyes widen in response and I lean down, drawing a sharp gasp from her when I press my lips to the scar, kissing along it slowly. "Oh, Gajeel..." she breathes. "You're so sweet."

"Yeah, yeah," I smirk. "Just for you though."

Reaching down, she grabs one of my wrists and directs it downwards, pressing my fingers to the irresistible burrow between her thighs. "Come on then, before I change my mind," she urges.

Now that's an order I'm more than happy to carry out. I can feel myself getting even harder as I start to stroke her outer lips, gauging her reaction. Her eyes are fixated on my hand and she breathes heavily. God, she's so wet already, it's driving me crazy. She moans softly when I slide a finger inside her, testing the waters, quickly joined by another. She tenses up a little at that, but I kiss her in an attempt to soothe her, take her mind off the discomfort.

As we kiss, I feel Levy's hands moving lower, skimming the top of my boxers before one slips inside and the other tugs the fabric lower. I hiss against her lips as her wandering fingers brush against my aching cock before wrapping fully around the base and pulling upwards in a firm stroke. Our hips rock in time with the amazing sensations we're giving each other and I can hardly hold back my noises of pleasure.

"Gods, Gajeel...take me, take me, please," Levy gasps, burying her head in my shoulder, her hand falling away from me to clench over my thigh. Only too pleased to oblige, I swiftly pull away from her to yank my boxers off and throw them aside. My fingers are covered in Levy's juices, which I spread slowly over my length, smirking at the lust darkening her gaze as she watches me. I've never wanted her more than I do right now.

I aimed to be gentle with her. Gods, the last thing I want to do is hurt her, but as I finally claim her, her cries for me to go harder, faster, it's more than I can take. Soon I find myself flipping her onto her front and pushing in with an almost deranged vigour as her screams of pleasure reverberate around us. Her tightness squeezes me powerfully from every angle, her skin slick against mine. There's something so primal, so animalistic in taking her like this, but she seems to love it and I know I definitely do. Just when I didn't think she could increase any further in volume, I reach a hand around to rub her delicate nub, and she comes undone in a matter of seconds, shuddering against me and crying out my name as she clenches her fists in the pillows and pushes back against me with surprising strength.

"Turn me back," Levy begs breathlessly, and I comply, withdrawing for a moment to let her readjust her position. She's panting from her orgasm, thighs tense and quivering, lower lips wet and swollen. She's so damn sexy and she's all mine.

I sink into her welcoming warmth once more and pull her into a deep kiss as I begin to rock my hips against hers. She moves with me, locking her legs round my waist and bucking upwards, gasping and moaning against my mouth. Her pleasure is my undoing and I swear my body just moves on its own, picking up speed till I'm ramming into her with everything I've got. Her cries turn high-pitched and frantic as she clutches at me, tightening her legs around me. Finally, with one last snap of the hips, I feel the rush of heat and I bury my head in Levy's shoulder, groaning out my satisfaction.

I'm beat. I'm so done. All my strength has just vanished in that single moment. It takes me a few minutes to pull myself up and collapse beside Levy, who just laughs at me as she rolls onto her side, propping herself up on an elbow. "Well, that was really something," she remarks as she splays her free hand out on my chest.

"I didn't hurt you, I hope?" I ask quietly, eyes already closing from exhaustion.

"No, not at all. It was amazing, Gajeel." Her soft warmth descends beside me and her fluffy head rests on my shoulder. "I, um...I think I might be a bit sore in the morning."

I laugh softly. "I'll take the twins then, and you can have a lie in."

"God, you're the best husband ever."

"You bet, shrimp." I turn my head to kiss her on the brow. She sighs happily and cuddles against me, pulling up the blankets to cover us. Enveloped in comforting warmth, with the woman I love nestled in my arms, I slowly drift off to sleep.

She's going to be okay. We're getting through...

* * *

 _So, this was interesting, writing smut from Gajeel's point of view. It was quite easy to do actually, though I never want to write the word "cock" again for as long as I live! You know how you just can't stand some words? That's one of mine. It's so vulgar, but it works here, I suppose._

 _I just want to reiterate here that I've no experience of postnatal depression. I do however know how it feels to have the manic highs and lows in mood as I have struggled with anxiety and quite possibly depression at times, so I've touched on that here._

 _As always, please tell me what you think. I'll be sure to read your review after having palpitations for several hours before opening it._

 _Tia_


	17. Chapter 17

_Hello, my lovelies! I'm so sorry I haven't uploaded anything for this story in a while. I've been incredibly snowed under with coursework again, which, combined with writer's block, didn't make for much to show you! I've managed to come up with this over the last few weeks though. It isn't great and really just an excuse to stick a bit more smut in, but you probably gathered that this fic is just a smut fest anyway. :P_

 _Enjoy, hopefully!_

* * *

I can't believe it's been a year! How time flies. A year since we got married...a year since our babies came into the world.

So much has happened since then. Fairy Tail just seems to be a magnet for love, because there are couples sprouting up everywhere! Lucy and Natsu finally made things official after dancing round each other's affections for so long, as have Gray and Juvia. Juvia has actually settled down remarkably, which we were all really surprised about. She hardly has her ridiculous outbursts at all now and Gray genuinely seems happy to have found love with her. Mirajane started dating Laxus about six months ago and they recently got engaged, to the delight of Lisanna, the fury of Elfman and the despair of poor long-suffering Freed. Evergreen announced last month that she and Elfman are expecting a son, she's four months gone. Oh, and speaking of babies…

Erza _was_ pregnant! She had the baby three months ago, a gorgeous red-haired, chubby cheeked little girl who looks more like Jellal than we like to admit. Things are...strained between them, to say the least. He pops in and out occasionally, but for the most part he avoids Magnolia entirely, so he hardly sees his daughter at all. Her name's Athena, by the way, Athena Cassandra Scarlet. Erza was so furious that Jellal missed her birth that she refused to give Athena her father's surname. It caused an absolute storm and Jellal went so nuts that Meldy had to drag him off to calm him down, though later on (after several mugs of ale and a bit of a cry) he did say it was probably better to not have any obvious connection to him as a criminal. Erza's an amazing mother and has seriously proved that she doesn't need a man in her life to help her raise a child. Gajeel and I do babysit from time to time though, so she can go out on the odd job.

Which brings us back to, well, us!

I admit, I'm still not fully myself. Motherhood has really taken its toll on me and the whole depression stuff is still hanging around, but nowhere near as badly as it used to. I've been able to go out on jobs again these last few months, with my loveable buddies in tow. Jet and Droy were over the moon to have me back, but they've been great, and haven't pushed me at all. We went on a few day jobs, then one that really tested me, as I was away from Gajeel and the twins for two days. The first night I was a sobbing wreck, but I pulled through and since then, I've felt a lot more confident.

Gajeel and I have gone from strength to strength as a couple. I'm no longer the sprightly little thing he fell in love with, but he says he loves me even more now, so I must be doing something right! I've lost my pregnancy weight at long last, my stretch marks are gone, thanks to the apothecary Bisca pointed out, and after one time too many of Shutora and Yaje flinging their breakfast around, Gajeel did the unthinkable and cut his hair short! I swear half the guild fainted when he walked through the doors, he looks like a pierced, grumpy Natsu now and it was hilarious for the first week or so, but we got used to it pretty quickly and it does look good on him, surprisingly! It made a nice change, to be able to run my hands through it and not snag one of his many tangles. In the throes of intimacy, you'd be surprised how much of a difference that can make. And, well…he's pretty insatiable these days. If I'm not worn out from handling the twins, he's all over me the minute we fall into bed at the end of the day. He's lucky he's so damn hot, he gets me so worked up in a matter of seconds I almost never refuse him.

Anyway!

Me, Jet, Droy, Lily and Gajeel have been in Crocus for the last few days, on a job for Princess Hisui. Lucy and Natsu are babysitting the twins for us while we're away. It was originally just going to be Shadow Gear, but I got a bit weepy before we were due to leave and Jet suggested Gajeel come along to keep me happy. So of course, Lily had to come too. They're not really doing much though, just tagging along and making sure I'm okay.

The job seemed pretty simple when we took it: the princess told us they'd discovered information on a cavern somewhere outside Crocus, supposedly containing ancient scrolls pertaining to the dragons and the Eclipse Gate. They wanted to take it all back to the palace for safekeeping in case anyone tampered with it. However, there were extensive runes placed around the treasury room, and they'd been unable to break through them, so Arcadios reached out to us for assistance. Upon arriving, we found that I was just as clueless as everyone else, so we're stuck here for the meantime. I don't claim to be well-known outside the guild, but we do only have two people proficient with runes, and Freed was already on a job with the Thunder Legion when we took this, so it's good that the princess remembered me.

It's been four days now and I'm starting to feel the worry of being away from my babies for so long. All I can do is throw myself into my work to distract myself. It's almost midnight, and Jet and Droy have returned to their hotel room to go to bed, but I'm still awake, knelt on the floor of my room with books and paper strewn around as I try to make sense of the runes that blocked us. They're unlike anything I've ever seen before and not being able to understand them is incredibly frustrating. Groaning, I push a book away and press my hands to my face, exhausted.

"Still struggling?"

Deep, laboured breathing punctuates Gajeel's words as he does push-ups on the other side of the room, with Lily sat atop his head, drinking kiwi juice. My oh-so delectable husband is shirtless and his whole torso gleams with sweat from his exertions. I love watching him train...there's something about the dedication he puts into it that's so sexy. Even though he's worn out from handling work, me and the twins, he still pushes himself to be stronger. It's admirable, really. "Yeah," I sigh. "I'm making no headway at all."

"You should get some rest, Levy," Lily suggests. "You might have an easier time on a good night's sleep."

"It's tempting, Lily, but I just want to get this over and done with as soon as possible so we can get back home." I turn back to the papers, frowning. "Lucy and Natsu are probably close to breaking point now after having Shutora and Yaje for so long."

"Nah, Salamander's a big kid himself," Gajeel grins, "they got it covered. Lily's right, shrimp. Go to bed, alright?"

"What about you?"

He flops down to the floor with a heavy breath. "Just let me jump in the shower, I'll be five minutes, okay?"

"Okay." Abandoning the mess I've made, I pull myself up and dust my pyjamas down before clambering into bed, while Gajeel heads off to shower and Lily joins me on the bed. He sets his juice aside and curls up in the space between my stomach and my bent knees. "How am I doing, Lily?" I ask quietly, running a hand through his soft black fur.

He makes an appreciative noise a little like a purr, scooting closer to me. "Hmmm...while you've certainly been a little more anxious today, I would put it down to the workload over anything else. Believe me, Levy, you have come along marvellously."

"Really?"

"Oh, yes. Six months ago, you could hardly stand to leave the house without Lucy. And now you're out on jobs that last for days. You seem happier and more content. It's good to see. Gajeel and I...we were very worried for you."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be. There was nothing you could have done to prevent it. But you're getting better, and we should be thankful for that."

As I start to drift off, I feel Gajeel join us, hair damp from the shower. He presses a soft kiss to my forehead and draws me into his arms, letting me rest my head on his chest. "I hope the twins are doing okay..." I murmur.

"Stop worrying," Gajeel replies gruffly, yawning. I swat his chest sleepily, and he grabs my hand, lifting it to his lips to kiss. "Hey now, wifey. Don't go beating up your bodyguard."

"You didn't have to come with us, you know…"

"I know. But I wanted to."

"I love you, you know."

"I love you too, sweetheart."

"Go to sleep, you pair of lovestruck fools," Lily grumbles.

* * *

In the morning, I wake to find myself alone. The usual anxiety of not having my babies with me hits me full force and I shout out for Gajeel hopelessly, knowing he won't be anywhere nearby. Tears are running down my cheeks and my heart is going a million miles an hour. Can't I just be _normal_ again?

Luckily, someone hears me. Jet pokes his head round the door with a frown. "Hey, Levy? You're…not okay. Oh, come here, what's up?"

I run into his arms, sobbing like an idiot. "Where's Gajeel?" I sniff. I must look a mess, with bed head and still in my pyjamas, but Jet's never been one to care about how I look.

"I'm not sure," he admits, shaking his head. "He went off with Lily a few hours ago. Calm down, okay? I'm sure they're fine. Get dressed and come down with us for some breakfast before Droy wastes away."

"Can I bring my notes?"

"Sure thing." Jet kisses the top of my head and dabs my cheeks before leaving me in privacy to find my clothes. He's been brilliant when it comes to handling my outbursts, whereas Droy sort of shies away, not sure what to do with me. I think Jet took a few tips from Lucy, considering he never used to boss me about prior to this! It really does help though. I throw on a black velvet dress with lacy sleeves and fix my hair with a silver headband that glimmers like wrought iron. Gajeel always loves it when I wear this particular getup, though I've had to tell him numerous times he can't eat my headband. Last time I told him that, he settled for…no, Levy. Mind on the job.

By the time I join Jet and Droy downstairs in the hotel dining room, the latter has eaten enough food to put Natsu to shame. Jet sits next to him, sipping coffee and leaning back in his chair, relaxed. I plonk my bag, full of last night's notes and scribblings, onto the table, where it lands with a thud. "Levy!" Droy grins, scrabbling for a nearby teapot. "How did you sleep?"

"Well enough," I reply, gratefully accepting the cup of tea he gives me. "I really hope I can work out these runes by today. I feel so awful keeping us hanging around here for so long."

"It's fine, it's fine!" Droy replies. "You take all the time in the world, alright? Work's work, after all. We'll support you as long as you need us!"

I beam at my teammates, feeling my heart swell with adoration for these two silly young men. I didn't think I could ever love them more, but they've gone above and beyond in supporting me with getting back to work, and I appreciate it massively. Taking a gulp of tea, I start to sift through my notes, the fog of utter confusion pressing down on me again. Jet peers over my shoulder, coffee cup halfway to his lips. "Don't you think they look completely different from anything we've seen before, Levy?" he asks quietly. "Like...they aren't even runes at all. A language, certainly, but there's something...I don't know...beastlike...about these."

"Hmmm…you may have a point…" I murmur, tracing a finger over a line of the peculiar symbols. They're sharp, angled, rough, like they've been gouged with a claw. Almost inhuman. I show them to Droy, but he shakes his head, mouth full of food. "This is horrible," I sigh, stealing some toast from Droy's plate and nibbling, head resting on my free hand. "And where the heck did Gajeel and Lily run off to?"

Jet shrugs. "I just saw the two of them heading out earlier this morning. You wanna go find them?"

"…No, they're probably just training or something-"

The dining room door crashes open suddenly, making us all jump and in Jet's case, he spills his coffe into Droy's lap in the process. Lily comes running in, looking worn out and haggard. "There you are!" he gasps, hopping up onto the table and tugging my arm. "Come upstairs, Levy. Gajeel's in your room, something's wrong with him."

"What?!" I leap up in shock. "What do you mean, something's wrong with him? Where have you two _been?"_

"I'll explain in a minute," Lily replies. With Jet and a rather damp Droy hot on my heels, I scoop Lily into my arms and hurry out of the dining room, up the flights of stairs and barge the door to our room open with my hip.

I'm not quite prepared for what meets my eyes. Gajeel is clinging to the dresser, teeth clenched and fingers digging so hard into the polished wood that gouges are forming. His entire body is shaking and he's breathing hard. Oh god, what on earth has happened? He doesn't _look_ injured…I can't see any marks on him, but when I make to approach he slams his head down and snarls. "Stay back!"

A stab of hurt twists my heart as I look down at Lily for more information. "He's been like this since about halfway back from the cavern with the runes," the little Exceed tells me.

The cavern? That's where they went? Why did they go without us?

"What were you doing there?" Droy asks apprehensively, eyeing Gajeel with a wary glance. Iron scales are flickering intermittently up his arms and across his face, and he looks to be struggling to keep himself under control. Lily wriggles out of my grip and crosses the room to hop up next to Gajeel, ignoring his deep warning growl. "Gajeel remembered something familiar about those runes this morning," Lily explains as he rubs Gajeel's arm in a futile attempt at soothing him, "so we went out to the cavern to investigate. It turns out that the runes are dragon script, which Gajeel can read, albeit not very well, but he knew enough to break the first set of enchantments around the scrolls."

"You...you broke them?" I gasp. Gajeel gives a low groan in response. "That's incredible! To use my magic like that...but then why is he like this, Lily?"

"Ah, well...he made an error in the next set and...at first we thought it had just blocked us from getting any closer, but on the way back, he began acting like this. It seems failing to break the enchantment fully triggered a defence mechanism around the scrolls that affects the intruder, and now he's having difficulty controlling his magic. I don't know how long it will last."

Oh, Gajeel. Always wanting to be the big tough guy, doing things on his own. Leaving Jet and Droy to observe from the doorway, I approach my husband again. "Stay back!" he repeats in a harsh tone, but I don't. I won't. I have to help him somehow.

I reach an arm out to touch his shoulder, hoping to calm him, but it does the opposite. He lashes out with a bestial growl, scales momentarily flashing over his whole body as he swings at me. I don't even think he recognises me at this point, it's like he's overcome by his draconic side. Luckily, I've trained enough with him to recognise his movements, and I easily dodge what would have been a crushing blow as Jet and Droy cry out in alarm.

"Hey now, baby...it's only me," I whisper, slipping behind him. My arms wrap round his waist and I pull myself close, resting my cheek against his powerfully muscled back. I can feel how tense he is, the spasms of his muscles, the tightness in his form. "Are you okay?" I ask softly.

"Levy..." he gasps out, "please back off...before I..."

"You won't hurt me."

Slowly, I slide my hands up and start to caress his chest, murmuring soothing words to him. He continues to growl and breathe heavily, fisting his hands against the dresser, but he doesn't lash out again. Gradually, I start to feel him relax beneath my touch. I look back over my shoulder at Jet and Droy, who are still watching warily. "I might be here a while. Why don't you go out for a while and we'll meet you again around lunch?"

"I don't think that's a good idea," Droy says, shaking his head.

"Yeah, what if you get hurt?" Jet interjects.

"I'll be fine. Trust me! Go on, guys. Lily, could you go as well, please?"

Lily nods silently and hops down to join Jet and Droy. Unlike those two, he's able to take my word, and he knows Gajeel well enough to trust that he won't do anything serious. Jet and Droy look unconvinced though. "Levy-"

Gajeel groans, thumping a fist down onto the dresser. "Get...out."

They don't need telling again, and they quickly scurry from the room. "Gajeel!" I chide gently. "They're just worried, that's all. Try to calm down." The minute my hands cease moving over him, his control begins to slip and his nails tear through the dresser like it were paper. Oh boy...the repair bill on this room is going to be through the roof. It's a good thing the princess is paying us handsomely for this job! If we ever manage to finish it, that is.

"Come and sit down," I tell Gajeel quietly as I reach over to prise his hands away from the dresser. They're scratched and bloody now, sore from the splintered wood. He groans again in response, but allows me to lead him to the bed, sitting him down on it. Instantly his hands dig into the mattress and iron claws tear through the sheets as his magic flares. "I can't...I can't control it," he gasps out, sounding agonised. Sweat runs down his face as he shudders, squeezing his eyes shut tightly.

"Shhh...let me help..." I feel his forehead, noting how hot he is. "Oh, baby, I hope this wears off for you soon..."

I know I'm potentially in danger if he strikes out again, but I have to do something. Taking the risk, I wind my arms round his neck and straddle his lap, resting our foreheads together. "Levy...no," he moans. "Don't...I might..."

"It's okay, Gajeel. It's okay." I press a kiss to his lips briefly. "Tell me what it is you're feeling. I might be able to figure out what's going on." I know my Script magic will be all but useless here in dispelling whatever it is that's affecting him.

He takes a few deep breaths before slowly lifting a hand and resting it on my waist. I gasp as it trembles and his iron scales graze my skin through my dress. "I...I've got these urges..." he whispers, "and I need to...to..."

His head falls between my neck and shoulder blade, his hot breaths on my skin making me shiver. "It feels like I need to kill...or fuck. I'd rather not take my chances with either. So please, Levy...get the hell out of here...before I lose it and end up hurting you."

Wow, he is one pissed off, pent up dragon. It's like he's become one, anyway. The enchantment at the caverns looks to have activated his animalistic side, like a mating season or similar. But I can't leave him, not like this. He'll probably go berserk without someone to keep him in check, and then I'd feel responsible if he hurt anyone. "Gajeel, let me help you," I tell him firmly. "You're no use to us like this and we've got a job to do. We don't know how long this will take to wear off, so..."

I can feel myself blushing! "Let's, uh...let's try and coax it out of you, huh?"

His pained red eyes fix on mine. "What do you mean?"

A deep heat is starting to pool in the pit of my stomach as I start to unbutton his black jacket slowly, smiling. "You know what I mean."

"I don't…I don't want to hurt you."

"It might as well be me, if anyone. But you won't. I know you won't. I'm never in danger when I'm with you. So relax, okay? I'm going to try and make you feel better."

"Levy..." His voice is cracking with the effort of his restraint, but the minute my lips touch his neck, he snaps. My head is pulled up sharply and his mouth seals over mine in a hungry kiss.

This is going to be rough, I just know it. But I'm prepared. I've been with him enough times now to know he doesn't exactly do gentle in bed, but, in his current state, with his loss of control, I get the feeling I'm going to be nursing some bruises for a while. Something inside me is lusting for the thrill. He's shown me pleasure beyond my wildest dreams during our time together, and I want to return the favour if it will help him get back to normal faster.

Within seconds, I've finished unbuttoning Gajeel's jacket and pushed it off his shoulders. His hands slide underneath my dress and grip my hips tightly, kneading my skin and leaving burning trails in their path. I can feel scratches already, but the sharp sting only fuels my need for him. I tear my lips from his and trail them down to his neck again, nipping under his jaw, making him growl as he pulls my hips closer to his, grinding us together.

My clothes suddenly feel obstructive in the heat of the moment. Sitting back momentarily, I reach down and pull my dress up and over my head, throwing it to the floor. Gajeel's lips claim mine and he gives a deep chuckle as he makes quick work of my bra and headband while I undo his belt. His pure desperation for release is evident in the frantic movement of his lips over mine, the hands digging painfully into my hair. My heart is thudding with a mixture of fear and longing, but I want him, and he needs me. Breathy little moans escape me as we continue to grind together, clinging, assaulting.

I make to pull Gajeel's form-fitting vest off, but he shakes his head, shoving my hands back down. They meet with his hardness, still covered by his trousers, which I tug downwards as much as I can along with what I can reach of his boxers. I have to lift myself slightly off his lap in order to yank the fabric out of the way, but as soon as his erection is free, he pulls me back down with one hand, using the other to literally shred my underwear off.

With one thrust, he buries himself inside me to the hilt and I scream, throwing my head back. "Oh, god! Gajeel!"

In this position, I have freedom to move, and Gajeel is matching me, his hips slamming up against mine and sending me into a delirious haze of indescribable ecstasy. I've never known him to be so wild in bed. Through the fog and my cries of pleasure, I just about remember he's only like this because of the enchantment, but, uh…if he could be like this a bit more often, that would be awesome.

Suddenly I'm pulled into Gajeel's chest and he flips us around so my back is pressed into the mattress. Taking hold of my hips, he pushes in again, setting a fast, rough rhythm as I dig my fingers into his hair and pull him down to kiss him passionately. He growls against my lips and bites down on my lower one; I feel the delicate skin split and the wash of blood over my tongue. It hurts horribly and I know Jet and Droy will go nuts, but I'll just bear it for now, and to be honest, the pain is fading already as my body floods with another wave of pleasure. My legs lock tighter around Gajeel's hips and I cry out his name, feeling him angle his hips to hit a spot inside me that makes me see stars.

"Levy…" Gajeel groans, chest heaving above me. A few more thrusts and he stills with a long, shuddering breath, his release filling me with warmth and satisfaction.

* * *

Holy hell. I am going to be so sore later. Gajeel slumps over me, breathing heavily. His body shakes as I cradle him close, stroking his back and nuzzling his neck, pressing kisses over his heated skin. For several minutes, we simply lie there, holding, caressing. "You okay, Gajeel?" I ask softly, breaking the silence.

He doesn't immediately respond, one of his hands sliding upwards to play with my hair. "...I think so," he murmurs after a few minutes, pulling back. His eyes trace down my face and I see him stop at my bloodied lip. "Oh, fuck. Levy, I'm so sorry!" He grabs a corner of the duvet and wipes my lips and chin gently, looking rather guilty.

I wince as he pulls on my skin. "It's okay," I grimace. "It'll heal up."

"Dumb and Dumber are going to flay me alive," he grumbles. "Well, they'll try, anyway."

It's probably going to bruise like hell, but I'll just get Wendy to sort it out when we get back to the guild. "Don't worry about it," I reassure him, pushing on his chest, indicating for him to back up. He does so, his softened length slipping out of me, and we shift to lie properly on the bed, Gajeel pulling the duvet over us before we settle down, nestled in each other's arms. I stroke a hand up and down Gajeel's firm chest, feeling the ripple of his muscles under my fingers. "I had to do something to drive that madness out of you, anyway. I figured a few bumps and scrapes would be part of the process."

"You were brave," chuckles Gajeel, kissing my cheek.

"Are you sure you're okay now?"

"Yeah, I feel fine."

I push myself back from Gajeel slightly so I can prop myself up on an elbow. "Gajeel…why did you go out to the caverns without us?"

He grimaces, then sighs. "I dunno, shrimp. Just wanted to be useful to you, I guess. Wanted to get there and see if I was right about the runes. And I was, but…yeah, I screwed up, didn't I?"

I giggle. "You did go a bit nuts. I've never seen you like that before."

"Sorry, shrimp. I've never _felt_ like that before." He runs a hand through his newly shortened hair, pushing it back from his face. "It was like…it felt like I'd started turning into a dragon…that's the only way I can describe it. Like a wild creature. I could hardly control myself at all. I…didn't expect you to step in like that, I'll be honest."

"I just didn't like seeing you like that, that's all."

"Yeah, yeah. Any excuse to get me into bed with you." I note the sudden playful tone in his voice.

"I need an excuse?"

"Well...nah, not really."

"I thought so." I smile, letting my hand wander downwards. In his fit of lust, Gajeel didn't remove much, and his trousers are still open, sitting loosely on his hips. His breath catches in his chest when I wrap my fingers around him. "Maybe I need to make sure you've got all that madness out of your system, hm?"

"You horny devil," Gajeel grins. In an instant he has me on my back again, pinning me down while he tears off his remaining clothing. This time, with his mind more his own, he pays attention to my desires. His hot mouth nips and licks around my heaving breasts as I moan and arch up into his touch, his fingers sliding down to tease my quivering folds, wet from my own arousal and his previous release. The rough pads of his thumb and index finger lightly pinch my clitoris, making me writhe and shudder beneath him.

He has me moaning loudly in a matter of seconds as his ministrations steadily push me towards climax; his tongue on my neck, lips and teeth ravishing my breasts, fingers alternating between stroking me and plunging deep inside. When I come it hits me hard, sending shockwaves of pleasure through my whole body as I scream Gajeel's name, clutching his hair tightly in my hands. Before I can even come down from my high, I feel his reawakened erection replace his fingers, the welcoming thickness pushing in, filling me so wonderfully.

My hips buck against his as I gasp out in pleasure against his shoulder, feeling him start to thrust, slow, languid movements that leave me aching for more. "Gajeel…" I groan, locking my legs around his waist, pulling him in more forcefully. He chuckles as he kisses his way across my neck and chest, heeding me and picking up the pace. His hands stroke teasing patterns down my stomach towards my legs, where he takes hold of my hips and pulls me further into him, making me inhale sharply before moaning loudly at the sheer burst of pleasure.

"You like that?" Gajeel asks breathlessly, continuing to hit that spot inside me with each thrust.

I can barely respond verbally save for gasps and moans, such is the pleasure he's giving me. "Yes...god yes...right there, oh-! Gajeel..."

An urgent ache starts to build between my thighs, an urge for release. I'm still sensitive from my orgasm barely minutes previously, but the sensation is white-hot, throbbing, needy. Gajeel's curious eyes follow my right hand as it leaves his hair and slides down between our bodies.

I...I haven't done this before. I mean, on my own, yes, certainly. But not around Gajeel and certainly not during sex. I always worried he'd think he wasn't enough for me. But I know him better now.

My fingertips brush against Gajeel's thick shaft as he moves within me, causing him to lean his head back and groan softly. God, I love seeing him in pleasure. Inching my hand up slightly, my index and ring fingers spread my lower lips and my middle finger rests against my clitoris, pressing down and rubbing in slow circles.

Gajeel watches, wide eyed. "Fuck, Levy...that's fucking hot," he whispers.

Oh, it feels good, so good. I can feel myself clenching involuntarily around him, pulses of pleasure bringing me closer to climax. I gaze up at Gajeel through lustful, half-lidded eyes, watching his expression intently. He has a hand on my breast, but I push it away with my free one before squeezing my little mound and rubbing my fingers over my nipple. At the same time, I roll my hips upward, bringing forth a deep growl from my delicious husband. "Do you like it when I do this?" I ask softly through the haze of pleasure.

"Fuck, yes. Do this more often." The commanding tone in his voice is so sexy, I love it. It sends shivers down my spine. His thrusts become harder, faster, as I feel him come closer to finishing. My stomach tightens rapidly in response to my rubbing, my breathing heavy and punctuated by moans and gasps of ecstasy.

"Gajeel! I'm...I'm gonna come!" I just about scream, a few seconds before I hurtle over the edge and feel my release burst forth in a torrent of uncontrollable spasms, a deep warmth flooding my body. My trembling muscles clamp down on Gajeel and he utters an impassioned moan, taking hold of my hips and slamming himself into me hard, over and over, stretching out my orgasm, making me shudder and cling to him.

"You're so tight," Gajeel gasps, throwing his head back. "Fuck, I can't...I can't last much longer..."

"Come for me, Gajeel!" I cry out.

"Damn, Levy-!"

Gajeel's hips push against mine a final time, driving himself as deep as he can go. A low moan rumbles in his throat as his body tenses up and he spills his release inside me for the second time. Looking utterly spent, he descends on me with a deep exhale, his hot, shaky breaths sporadic against my neck.

"Fuck me...that was amazing..." he whispers.

"Mm...yes..." I agree, smiling wearily. Gajeel's lips drift over my skin, making their way up to my own, capturing them in a gentle kiss. I utter a soft sigh of bliss in response to his caresses, savouring the feel of his rough, hard body against mine.

Gajeel slides his arms under my shoulders and deftly flips us over so I'm now lying atop him, my head on his chest, my body resting comfortably between his legs. I snuggle into him, yawning. "Worn out?" he asks with a chuckle as he secures the blankets around us.

"A little," I admit.

"Sleep then. We'll head back out later."

"Mm…you need to show me what you did with those runes."

"I will, don't worry."

Gajeel's strong arms wrap around me, enveloping me in comforting warmth. With his soft, steady breaths tickling the top of my head, and the thump of his heartbeat in my ear, I begin to drift off to sleep.

…What a morning we've had…

* * *

 _Double smut! I spoil you. :P_

 _Yes, I will carry this on for another couple of chapters so they can finish their job and get home. Then I'll probably finish the story and move onto something else. I've already got an itching to write a fic on Erza and her life as a mother. Watch this space, I suppose!_

 _Please do tell me what you think, as always._

 _Tia_


	18. Chapter 18

_Have a short and sweet Gajeel POV to tide you over while I rack my brains to try and figure out how the hell I want this to finish. No smut in this one!_

* * *

I drifted off myself for a while, when Levy did. Couldn't help it. Being outta control tires a man out!

By the time I wake up, it's nearing midday, and Levy has rolled off me at some point during our snooze; she's curled up next to me now, resting her head on her arm and snoring softly. She looks so damn cute like that…she's pretty flat out and doesn't even stir when I slide myself out of bed, searching for my clothes. They've ended up in all corners of the room, but I dress quick enough before dumping Levy's bag out onto the foot of the bed in an attempt to find her pens and paper.

Right, time to write down some of these runes.

It's odd…I never recalled even knowing about these till now. Did Metalicana teach them to me? I certainly didn't learn them in Phantom Lord. I could read and write our common script well enough, but my work still looked like chicken scratch till I was at least sixteen. These runes…they're so hauntingly familiar, yet I can't think at all where I've picked them up from.

Slowly, I start to write them out. Levy will probably understand it all within minutes of seeing it all laid out in front of her. There are pronunciations coming into my head too as I look at some of the symbols, and I detail those below each one as appropriate.

God, I wanna remember. Where the fuck did I see these before? I clench my jaw and scowl at the paper, feeling frustration rising in me, reminiscent of my uncontrollable rage just a few hours before. Dammit, Gajeel…keep calm…don't break anything again…

The blue-topped lump in the bed stirs with a low groan. "Mm…Gajeel?"

"Hey, shrimp." I glance up for a moment before drawing out a few more runes.

"What are you doing?" Levy sits up, rubbing her eyes with one hand and drawing the sheets over her chest with the other.

"Wanted to give you a head start. Here ya go." Putting the pen down, I pass the paper over to Levy, who puts it in her lap and just blinks at it for a few minutes, pursing her lips.

Suddenly she scrabbles out of bed, still very much naked, patting her hands down on every available surface. "Glasses! Glasses!" she mutters, eventually finding them inside her bag and pulling a huge, heavy book out from under the bed.

"Uh, shrimp…"

"Not now! Let me concentrate."

"Levy-"

"So this corresponds to this series of runes, which means that...aha! Okay, so then..."

Too late, I've lost her. Shrugging, I leave her to her nude translation work and head to the bathroom to shower.

Standing under the hot spray, I let myself relax as much as I can. The faint pulsing remains of the magic that affected my control is still active, if only slightly. I won't lash out again, I know that, but the odd set of iron scales is still flickering to life on my body and every time they do, I feel the momentary stab of bloodlust. Can't let myself slip again, though...I feel guilty enough for biting Levy's lip earlier, let alone anything else I might be capable of. Nothing scares me more than hurting her. Every time I promise not to...

Sighing, I push the flashbacks aside and begin to wash my hair, thinking about all the good memories instead. I mean, really, what the fuck did I do to ever deserve the life I have now? I have a gorgeous wife, two perfect kids, and friends...I never had friends in Phantom Lord. But then again, nobody really did, it wasn't the done thing. I was close to Juvia and that was about it, and even now I love her like a little sister. Then Fairy Tail...fuck, I never wanna remember the things I did. But if none of that had happened, I wouldn't have met Levy, Lily...I certainly wouldn't be a father now. I wouldn't have learned to love, or let myself be loved. I...wouldn't be happy.

Damn Fairy Tail, it's turned me soft.

Wouldn't have it any other way though.

When I emerge from the shower half an hour later, half dressed and taming my hair into something reasonable, Levy is still translating, but she apparently stopped long enough to put her underwear on, and Lily is sat on her lap, poring over her translation with her. She's still completely engrossed and only gives me a fleeting glance, but Lily raises his eyebrows in greeting. "Gajeel. You're okay now?"

"Yeah," I reply, going through my bag as I search for a bandana before pulling it on and shaking my hair back. "Sorry if I worried you. That was pretty rough, huh?"

"I'll say. You look fine, at least, which is more than can be said for Levy."

"Oi, Lily!"

Lily chuckles. "She isn't paying attention, you know what she gets like when she's working."

"Yeah, well! I don't wanna discuss it in front of her. Come on, let's go."

Lily gives a grunt as I grab his ear and carry him outside into the corridor, dropping him onto the floor once the door is closed behind us. "What happened?" Lily asks, glancing back towards the door. "She's bruised and scratched. Please tell me you didn't force yourself on her in the condition you were in."

" _What?!_ No! The fuck do you take me for, cat?"

"Calm down, Gajeel. I'm just getting the facts. You slept together, though?"

"Twice. She suggested it."

"Well, seems like it worked, but...what am I supposed to tell Jet and Droy?" Lily crosses his arms and gives me a disapproving glare. "They're not going to be happy with you. Levy can hide the scratches on her waist, but her lip is another matter entirely."

"I know," I moan, running a hand over my face. "I didn't mean to, I just..."

"You weren't yourself. I suppose you aren't wholly to blame. Just be prepared for Jet and Droy's barrage of abuse, they will no doubt be very upset."

I don't give a damn about those two, they get on my nerves royally. But they're Levy's best friends and it's best I stay on the right side of them if I wanna keep my shrimp happy. "I can apologise, but it probably won't make much difference. Where are they?"

"Still in town. They said they'll met us by the waterfront cafe in an hour, if that works for you. I came by to see if Levy had managed to get you under control yet." He smirks, looking over my open shirt and bare chest, which I notice now is raked with scratches from Levy's nails during our lovemaking. "From what you said, she definitely succeeded."

"Shut it, cat."

"Oh, whatever, Gajeel. You've always been such a sucker for her like that."

"...Yeah, yeah..."

"Hey, if it makes you happy, then I'm happy too." Lily hops up onto my shoulder, chuckling. "I'm still scarred for life after all the times I've caught you two, though."

"Hey, that was before we moved to the new place!"

"True. My hearing is pretty sensitive regardless, though. I still hear things."

"You fucking _what?!"_

"Oh yes. I have many bargaining chips to use against you, Gajeel." Fucking cat! He winks at me and I growl in response. "Now, unless you want me to recount to the whole guild the time I heard you being dominated by your tiny little shrimp of a wife, you'll take me downstairs and buy me some kiwi juice."

This fucker is getting drowned in a bucket as soon as we get home, I swear to Mavis. But before we can head off, the door opens behind us and Levy barrels into me. She squeaks in surprise. "Oh! Ow. Gajeel, Lily, come back in, I think I've got it! Come on, come on!"

I allow her to tug me back into the room, where she gestures happily to the many pieces of paper scattered around the bed. "We should be able to crack the enchantments now! What do you think?" She's jumping up and down with joy, hands clasped in front of her.

"Impressive work, Levy," Lily remarks as he picks up one of the pieces of paper, examining it closely. "You translated Gajeel's recollections very quickly."

"It was easy once I found the right pages in my book!" she beams.

I throw an arm round her shoulders and kiss her cheek. "Thanks, shrimp. Woulda been lost without you here. Right, we'd better find your lapdogs and make our way over there before the princess gets fed up of waiting for us."

"Okay!" Levy ducks out from under my arm and makes for the door, but Lily pops up in front of her in his battle form, shaking his head. "Lily?"

"Levy, you are a beautiful young lady, but I highly recommend you keep your lingerie for the viewing of your husband and other appropriate figures only."

"Hm? Oh! Oh god!"

I collapse laughing as she turns bright red and flees into the bathroom to change. My wife, people! Forever the manic scatterbrain. It's those books, I tell ya, they mess with her head!

* * *

So I'm currently nursing a sizeable lump on my head and a black eye, courtesy of Dumb and Dumber. They weren't best pleased with Levy's appearance when we went to meet up with them. She'd slapped on some makeup but her bruised lip was still pretty obvious and they both went nuts at me. Can't say I blame them. Lily laughed the whole time, the ass.

After a quick check in with Mira back at the guild via a communication lacrima to let her know we're still on the job, we set off for the caverns again. Levy skips ahead with Droy, Lily sat on her shoulder, while I hang back with Jet, who decided he fancied walking with me instead of his fat friend.

"Hey, Gajeel."

"Look, if it's about her fucking lip again, I don't wanna hear it, alright?"

"No, it's not. I, uh...just wanna say thanks, I guess."

"Huh?" I frown at him. Jet and I have never exactly gotten on well, which is to expected considering, you know, I bolted his team to a fucking tree. "Whaddya mean, thanks? You off your head or something?"

He sighs. "Look, you and me, we're not friends. You know that as much as I do. But you're Levy's husband, and I have to accept that. She loves you, despite everything that happened, and how she got over it like she did, I'll probably never know." He scratches his head, pursing his lips. "She's changed since she fell for you. I dunno, she just seems a lot more content with her life now she's married and had kids."

"Where are you going with this, Jet?"

"Nowhere, really. Just wanted to let you know I...not just me, but Droy as well...we appreciate what you've done for her. She means so much to us and you've been there for her in a way she never let us be."

I grunt in acknowledgement, eyeing Levy as she walks along, arm in arm with Droy. "You two still love her, huh?"

"Pobably always will. But it's different now. We've matured and we know how things have gotta be."

"She's always gonna love you idiots regardless, you know that? Which is more than I can say about you. Still can't stand either of you."

Jet laughs at that. Then he stops walking abruptly, turns to me and holds out his hand. "I'm not too fond of you either, but where Levy's concerned, I think we can call a truce. What do you say?"

I grin at him, nodding, and grasp his hand firmly. "Yeah, you got it. You're still my Fairy Tail teammate at the end of the day. Gotta work together to keep it all going."

"Yeah. Thanks, Gajeel. You're not so bad, I guess."

"...Hey, you wanna grab a drink together when we get back to Magnolia? Droy as well. We might as well try and bury the hatchet if it keeps Levy happy."

"I'd like that."

Who said romance was dead, eh?

Or, well, bromance. Elfman would be creaming himself over this.

* * *

 _Sorry it's so short! Honestly, my writers block is huge right now, but I just wanted to give you all something in the meantime._

 _You can probably tell I like Jet a lot more than I like Droy. I'm not sure why. It's been like that since the start, even before Droy got fat. :P_

 _So as always, please let me know what you think!_

 _Tia_


	19. Chapter 19

_Hi guys. Please note with this chapter, I have gone off track further with the canon now, but it was unintentional, and I will explain at the end. Enjoy, anyway!_

* * *

We stand in front of the narrow entryway, observing the series of scratchy, bestial looking symbols floating in the air above us. They will not allow us to pass unless we can translate them. Around us, the steady drip of water and the scent of abandonment and decay abound.

"Okay, Gajeel. So this was the first set of the runes that you broke, right?"

With my pen at the ready, I gaze over my shoulder at Gajeel, who is standing back with Lily. He nods slowly in response to my question. "Yeah…though it looks like it's reset itself since we were last here."

He looks a little strained and his breathing has become heavier since we arrived. I get the feeling the enchantment on him from earlier has yet to fully wear off, and it's being magnified in the presence of the runes. Lily is in his battle form, seemingly just in case he loses it again, but Jet and Droy flank me protectively as well. I trust my husband, though. Nodding, I turn back to the runes and begin to translate them, my pen creating fine lines of light as I go. Jet and Droy watch, transfixed. In my free hand I hold the written translation to help me.

 _Those who come to these hallowed halls shall bear the memory of our kind._

The runes shine a dazzling white before fading away, marking the first set as being broken. We can approach further now. "Well done," Droy murmurs, while Jet grins and ruffles my hair. Gajeel breathes a sigh of relief and we slowly move closer, into the long, dark hallway. "You holding up back there, baby?" I call over my shoulder.

"I'm fine," Gajeel replies softly. "Don't you worry about me…let's just get this over with."

The second set of runes blazes to life before us, barring our path. These are shorter…these are the ones Gajeel got wrong, the ones that made him lose control of his powers. "You sure you've got it right this time?" Lily asks tentatively.

"I'm sure," I smile, looking down at my notes. "Okay, so…"

These runes seem to speak firstly to anyone who was clever or brave enough to venture here, to claim the scroll for themselves, and then…to the Dragon Slayers themselves. "Gajeel…" I murmur, looking back again. He gazes at me curiously, arms folded over his chest. "We might discover some truths about the dragons that you're not ready to know about, if this set of runes is anything to go by. Are you prepared?"

I can see the apprehension in his eyes, the defeated slump of his shoulders. Metalicana left him so young, so full of questions and anger…this could be more than he can take.

But after a few moments, he flashes me his usual smirk. "Yeah, I'm prepared, shrimp. About time we all got some answers."

"Go on, Levy," Droy urges. "This place gives me the creeps."

"Okay, give me a minute. I'm almost done…"

My pen moves through the air again, translating slowly.

 _You, who bear our power, shall know our shame._

I've done it. Well, we've done it. If it weren't for Gajeel realising where he went wrong and providing me with such good foundations, we'd still be stuck here, wondering. The runes fade away, letting us pass further. "You're doing very well," Lily remarks as he ducks his head to avoid a few jagged rocks. "I wonder, will that be all of them?"

"I don't know," I admit quietly, glancing at Gajeel. "I hope that was the last one."

I'm worried now. The closer we get, moving through this derelict hall, the more he seems to be in pain. Jet and Droy haven't noticed, but I can see the discomfort in his face, how tense he is. "Gajeel?"

"I'm fine, Levy." He shakes his head, flapping a hand at me. "Trust me, I won't lash out again. I got it under control."

Oh, I hope he can hold to that.

Finally, the scroll comes into full view, seated on an intricately carved stone pedestal. It was only just visible from the mouth of the entryway, but now, up close, we can see just how large it is, and how old…yellowing, ragged and torn. Even my oldest books don't look as weathered as this scroll does. We will have to handle it very carefully. "Wow," Jet breathes. As he reaches a hand out, a mere five feet from the pedestal, the air shimmers and he comes to a halt as yet more runes block us. "Ah, dammit," he curses. "Sorry, Levy."

"It's not your fault," I reassure him gently, putting a hand on his shoulder to steady myself as I step forward. Again, these runes are shorter than the last, only a few words or so.

This is it…once these are out of the way, we should be able to grab the scroll and get the hell out of here. I can hardly stand to be away from my babies a minute longer and I'm desperate for the comforts of Magnolia. Taking a deep breath, I ready my pen for what I hope is the final time.

 _May you find strength._

"Yes!" I sigh happily as the runes blaze brightly before me.

But they don't fade. Oh god...what did I do wrong?

"Levy?" Gajeel murmurs, sounding pained. "What's wrong?"

"They aren't...they aren't fading," I frown. "I didn't do it wrong..."

"Are you sure?" Droy asks.

"Yes!" I snap, rounding on him. He shrinks back worriedly. "You think I would be stupid enough to mess this up?"

"Gajeel did," Lily points out.

"Oi, cat!"

"It's true, though."

"Fuck you!"

"Everyone be quiet!" Jet shouts. "Look!" He points at the runes, which are rearranging themselves into a single word.

Gajeel frowns at it, then cocks an eyebrow. " _Tinvaak_...speak..." he whispers.

"Gajeel?" I gaze at him in wonder.

"It says "speak." I think...I think it's not going to let up until the language is actually spoken." He rubs his chin thoughtfully. "I dunno _what_ needs to be said though."

"Can you speak the language?" Jet asks him.

"Yeah, a little. A lot of it is coming through the longer we're here...odd words here and there. It's dragon tongue, but I don't remember ever learning it." He straightens and cracks his knuckles, looking determined as he gently pushes Lily away, indicating that he's okay. "I'll say a few words, and see if that does anything."

If the rough, bestial appearance of the written language is anything to go by, the spoken word must be guttural, powerful. I'm a little excited to find out. Gajeel stands before the runes, standing tall and straight, a deep ruby gleam in his eye despite the discomfort and pain he's in.

 _"Zu'u, Dovahkriid, paara mindoraan faal vod."_

Oh my.

I've never heard Gajeel speak with such a fierce accent before. It gives me a shiver down my spine and goose bumps prickle on my bare arms. Totally not aroused, honest! Oh, who am I kidding, that was sexy as hell.

Finally, the runes fade away and Gajeel is first to stand immediately before the pedestal. He reaches a hand out to touch the scroll gently and nods, releasing a heavy sigh. "It's safe to approach," he tells us, "and I can feel the enchantment has worn off me completely now. Must have broken it along with the runes."

"That was amazing, Gajeel!" Droy exclaims as we surround the pedestal. "How did you know what to say?"

"I didn't," he grunts. "Lucky guess. Mighta just wanted to hear something spoken, anything."

"What did you say?" asks Jet.

"I said "I, Dragon Slayer, seek to know the past."" Gajeel lifts the scroll very carefully so as not to damage it, and places it inside a protective tubing that Droy produces out of his bag. "Right, time to get this back to the princess."

And not before time! I'm itching to go home. Finally...not long till I see my babies again.

* * *

The princess Hisui is so grateful that we managed to get the scroll to her at long last. After changing into more formal clothes and eating dinner with her and King Toma, she took us into a conference room, where we carefully spread out the scroll for us all to get a first look at.

"Remarkable," Hisui whispers as she pores over the rough scratches of text, though she doesn't understand it yet, as I haven't translated any of it. "You went through a lot of trouble to obtain this. I thank you."

"If I may, your highness," I pipe up, "if it turns out that the scroll contains information necessary to relay to other Dragon Slayers, I ask that we are permitted to take a copy of the translation for our own archives..."

"Yes, of course," she smiles. "This record is not mine alone. But now, we must begin the work of translation. Will it take long?"

"A few hours, perhaps."

"Nah," Gajeel grunts, folding his arms on the table, scowling at the scroll's contents. "Five minutes, if that."

I stare at him, surprised. "Gajeel? Can you read all of it?"

"Yeah. Seems breaking the runes is letting me read the script fluently."

"That will save us a lot of time!" Jet grins, Droy nodding beside him.

"Then, by all means, Gajeel," Hisui beams at him.

His eyes rove over the words for a few moments before he starts to read:

 _Alas, the calamity, he of the dark, Acnologia, has overcome us. Our numbers deplete as the years wear on, his wrath never sated. A mortal human gifted with the power of a Slayer, his lust for the death of those who granted him this gift lent him to madness, the over-use of magic forever altering his form. Among the survivors, we call this "Dragonification."_

 _Our last hope can only be placed in our five tender children. But we fear for them, fear they will become that of our enemy. And yet, their powers are too valuable to risk wasting. Miss Anna has made it known that this is the last opportunity we shall have._

 _And so we have come to a decision, one we have not undertaken lightly. We are to send the children through the Eclipse Gate, four hundred years into the future, to a time rich in Ethernano; to grow, be nurtured and hone their powers in order to defeat Acnologia. To prevent their Dragonification, we shall implant our souls inside their bodies, creating antibodies that will stall the process. False memories will be imposed upon them, and though it pains us to do so, it is necessary so that they may grow without our burden._

 _By the time this scroll is discovered, our time will have come. We can live on as spirits for several years inside a host, but our work will be complete by the time we pass on, and no risk of draconic alteration will befall the children._

 _We leave behind this record for them, protected behind our tongue, so that one day, they might know the truth._

 _As fathers, we wish to leave our own words for each of our children._

There's more, but Gajeel stops there, continuing to read silently. As he does, he nibbles on his lower lip, swallowing as tears well up in his eyes.

"Gajeel?" Lily asks. "This is...this means..."

He shakes his head, suddenly pushing his chair back and standing from the table. "Sorry, I...I just...need some air..."

We can only watch in surprise as he leaves the room quickly.

Hisui puts a hand over her mouth, her eyes wide. "Oh, I...I didn't expect him to get upset. Please forgive me. It was not my intention."

"It's alright, your highness," Lily tells her. "Gajeel isn't the brick wall he appears to be sometimes. He is quite easily overcome with emotion."

"I'll go find him," I murmur, standing.

"Yes, please do. We will postpone this for now. I don't want to keep you here any longer than is necessary, so if Gajeel is willing, please return soon, if not, tomorrow morning will suffice."

"Don't worry, I'll bring him back now," I reassure her.

My mind is racing as I hurry through the palace, searching for my husband. He's...the first and third generation Slayers...it must be them. There's five, after all. Gajeel, Natsu, Wendy, Sting and Rogue. They came from four hundred years in the past! And their dragons, their fathers...inside of them? But...they have died? No wonder Gajeel is upset.

Somehow I know where I'll find him. Taking the path we walked down almost two years ago now, I dash down the corridor, past the familiar writing desk, to the very end and push through the open door...

Into the gardens, where we first claimed each other all that time ago.

* * *

It's deserted, and dusk is beginning to fall, though it's still quite light out. Tentatively, I call out for Gajeel, but hear no response. He must be further in. I start to explore, entering the maze that we chased each other in, all that time ago. It feels like an age now, having settled down, married, borne his children. Everything moved so fast...but it's been worth it. Every second.

Eventually, when I reach the centre of the maze, where the marble dragon stands, I hear a voice, a voice in distress, sobbing. "Gajeel?" I call softly.

A hearty sniff, but no reply. I know those sobs when I hear them, though. My heart squeezing sadly, I walk round the far side of the dragon statue to find my husband sat at the foot of it, rubbing his eyes. His body shakes as he tries to hold back his sobs, but as soon as I kneel down in front of him, taking him into my arms, it's like a dam bursting, and he buries his face in the crook of my neck, his tears dampening my skin. He cries...a full-on, devastating, grieving cry that rocks me to my core.

I cry with him, unable to control myself, so saddened by his heartbreak. We hold each other and let our tears fall freely, making our sorrow known to the night.

"I'm sorry," he chokes out, clinging to me like I might disappear.

"Shhh...it's okay." I nuzzle him gently, pressing kisses down his cheek and jawbone. "Take your time."

"Levy, I...god, you were right...I wasn't ready for this." He pulls back, eyes puffy and cheeks wet. "Fuck, I never thought...I never thought I'd find out like this. Metalicana, he...he's gone. Gone, and I never got to tell him..."

Shuddering, he wipes away more tears. "I loved him," he murmurs. "He was a jerk, and he brought me up rough, but I loved him. He was my father, y'know? And when he left, I was on my own. Just a little fucking kid, couldn't speak a word of the common tongue, scared and angry. Nothing to live for. Till Jose picked me up...and then look what I became."

A lone tear escapes his eye and cascades down his cheek, which I wipe away gently. "I was a fucked up kid, Levy. I wanted answers, and the only way I could forget about it all was by breaking shit, beating people up, doing all the dirty work. I just...wanted my dad...and now I know he's gone, really gone, it's like being fucking abandoned all over again..."

"Gajeel..."

I shift, sliding into his lap sideways so I can rest my head on his chest. His powerful arms encircle me, holding me tightly. "You aren't alone now," I whisper. "Never. So long as you have me and the twins...Lily...Fairy Tail...we're all here for you."

"It means a lot, Levy. Thank you."

"You're welcome, baby."

He smiles gently. ""Baby." Why did you start calling me that?"

"I don't really know, come to think of it," I murmur, nuzzling his chest. "It was ironic at first, but then it just stuck. It's been a few months since I started, right?"

"Yeah. I like it."

"You do?"

"Mmhm." Gajeel rests his head atop mine, holding me a little tighter.

We sit together in silence for a few minutes, holding each other lovingly. I gradually feel Gajeel's heartbeat slow as he becomes calmer, and now no more tears fall.

"So...I guess you came from the past, then? That's crazy."

"Yeah." He chuckles, which I'm relieved to hear. "Explains why me and Salamander couldn't get out of Freed's rune traps back when Laxus went crazy."

"The runes must have considered you to be, what...um..."

I gasp, my face suddenly flushing with embarrassment. Gajeel frowns at me. "What's up?"

"Oh my goodness! We've known each other for ages now, we're _married_ and I don't know how old you are!"

Gajeel raises a pierced eyebrow and cocks his head to the side. Then he laughs. A real, mirthful laugh, so contrasted from the bitter sobs of before, though his eyes still look watery and sore. "Shrimp! You do crack me up. I forget how old _you_ are half the time. You know, since you're so short and that." I slap him round the head and he grins at me. "I'm kidding. Yeah, I'm the eldest out of the five...I'm twenty-two."

"That sounds about what I expected."

"Heh. No wonder I'm so much bigger than you, eh shrimp?"

"Oh, you're feeling better now?"

"Huh?"

"We're back to making jokes about my height."

He grins at me and ruffles my hair. "Yeah...I'm alright now. Bit of a cry, cuddle from my woman, I'm good. Don't you worry about me, sweetheart. I got you and the kids, Lily and the guild. Like you say, I ain't alone now. I'm just glad I know the truth about my dad."

I smile widely at my gorgeous hunk of a man, admiring his inner strength, as I lean in to peck him on the lips, pleased when he hugs me tighter, deepening the kiss with his tongue brushing over mine. "I love you," I whisper when we pull away.

"I love you too. Thanks...you know, for being here for me."

"I'll always be here, Gajeel."

"That's all I want."

* * *

Later, back at our hotel room, Gajeel provides me with a full written translation of the scroll, minus the parts intended to be read by the other Dragon Slayers. "That's for them and them alone right now," he explained to me, before turning in for the night. All that crying must have worn him out because he's dead to the world within minutes, cuddling an also snoozing Lily close.

With a mug of hot chocolate balanced between my legs and my belly, I lean back comfortably in bed, poring over the translation again and again. On the other side of the paper are Metalicana's words to Gajeel, but I haven't plucked up the courage to read them yet, although Gajeel has said I'm more than welcome.

My husband came from an era four hundred years ago...it's shocking, to say the least. All of them, they...did they know each other as children? Did they grow up together? Play together? Fight, more likely, knowing Natsu and Gajeel. I bet they were cute kids. I'm going to have to find a load of books on what their cultures might have been like back then. Oh, I'm so interested to find out more.

Well...I should probably read the other side now. Metalicana's special words to his son.

 _Gajeel,_

 _I can just imagine your angry, screwed up little face as you read this. But I suppose you're probably not so little anymore. Have you grown up? Did you get the chance to see the vastness world beyond our nests?_

 _Ah, my perpetually frustrated child. So much I wished to tell you before this time came. How I wished that you and Natsu could get along just once. How proud I always was to see you standing up for and protecting Wendy. How I admired your friendship with Lyos. But ultimately, how much I loved you, in spite of the way I raised you. I admit I was a rough father to you, maybe even violent sometimes, but I took you in and brought you up myself, and I came to love you, tiny and violent as you were. You were a challenge to raise, and a pleasure._

 _Now I'm not around to take care of you in the future time, I hope that you will find a new family, new friends. When you are older, I hope you can settle down and pass on our heritage. Igneel always does laugh that our boys will need strong women to handle them, and I'm inclined to agree. Find your perfect mate and have many children, surround yourself with the happiness and companionship you have always deserved. You were alone when I found you as an infant, and I shall regret leaving you alone once more when we send you through the Eclipse Gate. If you can find it in that big iron heart of yours to forgive your old man, I would find peace._

 _Be strong, my son. Be as strong as the metal that shapes your very being. I am proud of you, now and forever._

 _Your loving father,_

 _Metalicana_

* * *

...

...

Sorry, I...I'm just sobbing so much now. So much so that I've had to retreat to the bathroom, so I don't wake up Gajeel and Lily. Sitting on the edge of the bath, I bury my face in my hands and try to calm my shaking body.

Sometimes I think it's a blessing that I can't remember my parents...Gajeel has had the agony of not knowing what happened for years, just wanting his father back. His heart must have torn in two when he read this. Any grief I've experienced is nothing compared to this. And such sweet words from Metalicana...it's little wonder Gajeel cried the way he did earlier.

Oh, Gajeel...you've been through so much. I'm so glad you came to us when you did. Who knows what pain you would have been in, had Fairy Tail not taken you in as one of our own?

Drying my eyes and finally managing to quell my sobs, I return to the bedroom and settle down in bed, spooning my snoring husband from behind with an arm draped over his stomach, forehead resting against his shoulder blade. He utters a soft, sleepy murmur and shifts in response to my touch, before sighing and drifting off again.

After reading his father's words, all I want is to hold him close and never let him go.

* * *

 _Okay, so when I wrote this, I'd pretty much forgotten just why the dragons were inside the Slayers' bodies. So I wrote it as if they were purely doing it to stop them from becoming dragons, and forgot they also did it to allow their souls to heal in preparation to fight Acnologia. But hey...it's an AU. By the time I realised, I'd written too much to want to try and change it, so we'll roll with it._

 _And yes, that is Dovahzuul that Gajeel speaks in. And the "runes" are the same. I've no imagination, but I wanted the dragons to have their own language, so I stole Skyrim's, using a translator online at the Thu'um website. It won't be 100% accurate but I gave it a good go._

 _Oh, and finally, I guessed on Gajeel's age, since it's never been stated. I figured he loks too old to be the same age as Natsu, so I added a few years onto him._

 _This chapter was quite a sad one, eh? As always, please let me know what you think._

 _Tia_


	20. Chapter 20

_This is the last chapter! I figured here was a good place to finish up and lay the foundations for any fics I write that are set in this AU. I wrote all this in a hurry in the space of about two hours whilst having an Audioslave binge. Very sad to hear of Chris Cornell's passing; his music was such an important part of my teenage years. I hope he has found peace._

 _Anyway, on with the finale._

* * *

Finally, we're on the road back to Magnolia. Levy wouldn't let us walk back on account of her "sore feet" and "Droy won't keep up" (chubby twit could do with losing a few fucking stone anyway!), so…train it is.

RIP me and my stomach. Where's Wendy when you need her? Currently I'm sprawled out over several seats, trying desperately not to let my guts upend themselves while Lily pats my head in what he clearly thinks is a soothing gesture. "Sod off," I groan, swiping at him.

"If you insist," Lily shrugs, returning to reading his paper. "Not long now till the next stop and we can pick up our companions."

Ah yeah, Sting and Lyos are coming aboard soon. We contacted them as soon as we finalised the scroll's translation, so they can come and read their dragons' words. Knowing those two, they'll bawl as much as I did, except it'd be less pathetic in their case. They'll be good company, anyway. Dumb and Dumber are napping in the next carriage and Levy has wandered off somewhere, presumably wondering if there are any books stashed away somewhere. If anyone can find a stray book, it's her.

Eventually, after my stomach has betrayed me twice, the train pulls into a stop at a remote town. "Thank fuck," I moan, wiping sweat from my forehead.

"Right, where's the big goof? Wallowing in motion sick pity, probably."

"Hey, be nice."

"I AM being nice!"

"Sting!"

"Rogue!"

"Here they are," chuckles Lily. You can hear those two a mile off, honestly. Well, mostly Sting, who appears first, grinning as usual, while Lyos trails behind, pulling his cloak tighter around himself and frowning at his surroundings. Lector and Frosche wander in close behind them. "Good morning, Master Sting, Rogue," Lily says, standing to shake their hands.

"Hey, Lily!" Sting pumps his paw vigorously, then prods me in the stomach. "Get up, Gajeel! Come on, we've got something for you."

Reluctantly, I sit up, shifting over on the seats so there's enough room for Hector and Frosche to greet Lily. "Oh yeah? It better be something that makes this train journey easier."

Lyos chuckles softly. "Well, actually…"

He reaches into his cloak and pulls out a small bottle, opening it and dispensing two tablets into his hand. "Here, take these. Our guild apothecarist created them recently…they should ease your sickness. We've taken them too."

"Really? That's fucking awesome. Gimme!" Snatching the pills, I swallow them and practically moan with delight as I feel my queasiness melt away within seconds. "Oh lord, that is better than sex. Thanks guys."

Sting raises an eyebrow, then laughs. "I've heard some funny rumours about the stuff you and your woman get up to, Gajeel. Surely she's more than a match for a couple of pills."

Fucking Lily! I knew he'd have told somebody. His Exceed mates, by the looks of the blush running up Lector's face. Lily smirks at me over the top of his paper. "Screw you all," I mutter. "Right, sit down, both of you. Got something for you too."

"Sure. Rogue?" Sting lets Lyos – dammit to hell, it's Rogue, Rogue! - sit down first, then perches on the arm of the seat beside him. Their scents mingle as they hit my nose and I suddenly realise I have very valuable dirt on the two of them. Oh, this is interesting, very interesting indeed. Rogue catches my eye and shakes his head, folding his arms. "Don't you dare."

"Oh, come on! I get ribbed for _my_ sex life the minute you see me, yet you two have been fucking in secret? How long has that been going on for?"

"Um…" Sting coughs uncomfortably. "Yeah, about that…"

"We were _hoping_ to keep it quiet for a while longer," Rogue scowls.

"Answer my question, morons!"

"…About six months."

Lily puts his paper away, looking surprised. "Oh, you two are an item? You have my congratulations. I'm very happy for you."

"Fro thinks so too!"

"You already knew, dummy!" Lector chides, but he's smiling. Truth be told, I am too. They've always been close. Guess it was just natural for them to take the next step. Either way, if they're happy then it ain't our business. "I won't tell," I reassure them. "Take your time, yeah? I remember feeling bombarded with attention when me and Levy first became a thing. Can't blame you for wanting to keep it under wraps."

"Thanks, Gajeel," Rogue sighs, looking relieved. "I was worried for a minute there."

"Nah, you can trust me. Anyway, here…you'll wanna read this." I pull out the translated scroll and pass it to Sting. "On our last job, we found a scroll, and it's addressed to us, the Slayers raised by dragons. There's a passage at the bottom that's for the both of you. Sorry, I've read all of it. Kinda had to, to be able to translate it. Hope you don't mind."

"It's fine," Sting murmurs, eyes following Levy's flowing calligraphy steadily downwards. Rogue kneels up on his seat to read with him, laying his head on his shoulder. I probably lose some man points for saying they look pretty sweet together like that.

While they read, I let my mind drift. Where the hell is Levy? I bet she's found a book and curled up somewhere private to read it. We won't see her for the rest of this journey if that's the case.

…And holy hell, these pills are amazing. The train started moving again a few minutes ago and I feel great, not sick at all.

A deep sniff jolts me out of my reverie, and I look up to see Sting wiping his eyes, while Rogue buries his face in his cloak, sobbing. Their respective Exceeds jump over to comfort them, while Lily and I just watch, waiting for them to calm down. "This is…real, right?" Sting asks softly as he hands the translation back. I nod silently, and he curses under his breath. "I don't know what to say…"

"Our memories…they were false…I'm so thankful," Rogue croaks out, lifting his head up to reveal eyes streaming with tears. "We didn't kill them, Sting. We didn't…oh, god…" He hides his face again. Sting draws him close, stroking his hair as they both cry freely.

They're gonna need some time to process this. "Come on, Lily," I urge him, pointing towards the carriage door. "Let's go find Levy."

"Right you are, Gajeel," he agrees, hopping up onto my shoulder. Lector gives us a curt nod as we leave, while Frosche just waves.

* * *

We don't need to search long for Levy. Her voice reaches us before we see her, and she's yelling, really yelling. Lily and I stare at each other in shock. It isn't like Levy to shout at anyone.

"I don't _believe_ you! I swear, if you don't come back with us, I will _drag_ you, do you hear me?"

"Levy, hold on a second-"

"I will not! Meldy, help me out here!"

Ah. Erza's runaway lover. What a coincidence. When we reach the next carriage, we see them; Levy pointing her finger angrily at a shrinking Jellal while Meldy looks on awkwardly, looking like she'd rather be anywhere but here. They've both got their hoods up, but I'd recognise his smell anywhere. "Oi, shrimp!" I call, and she jumps, having not seen me. "Leave the poor bastard alone for a minute, eh?"

"Gajeel!" she gasps. "You scared me."

"You didn't hear me coming over the sound of your own voice!" I grin, wrapping an arm round her shoulders and inclining my head to Jellal. "Fernandes. Seems my wife's having a rare moment of rage. What've I missed?"

He scratches his head, sighing. "Nothing, really. Can we drop this, please?"

"No!" Levy scowls. She looks absolutely furious with him, and I can't say I blame her, the number of times he's done a runner on Erza and now, their daughter. Levy says Erza's doing fine without him, but I wager otherwise. She's hopelessly in love with the blue-haired goof. "Give me one good reason why you won't come to see Erza and Athena."

"I-I…"

"I mean it!"

"Let the man speak, Levy," Lily tells her gently, and Meldy nods in agreement, patting Jellal on the shoulder. "I believe you're intimidating him somewhat…all five foot two of you."

She folds her arms and frowns at him, obviously not liking the joke about her height. I just laugh at the cuteness of it all. Jellal sighs again and slumps back into a nearby seat, removing his hood; seems Levy's shouting cleared the carriage. "Levy, put yourself in my shoes for a moment," he says. "I'm a criminal, a convicted criminal, on the run from the Magic Council. Doranbolt and Lahar know about me…it isn't safe. I don't want to bring that to Erza or Athena. They deserve better than that."

Levy and I look at each other with raised eyebrows, his excuse not washing with us at all. "Rubbish," I snort. "You're talking about one of our top S-class mages. I reckon she can handle a bit of criminality in her life, and so can her daughter. She's only a few months old but she's gonna be one of us, she can deal with it."

"But, I...

Meldy squeezes his arm. "Jellal, they're right, you know. I keep telling you that we should visit, Erza must be desperate to see you."

Jellal looks up at us, chewing his lip worriedly as he runs a hand through his hair. "Really? The idea just...scares me so much."

"Right...listen here, Fernandes." I plonk myself down on a seat opposite him and lean back, folding my arms. Levy plucks Meldy's sleeve and they retreat back a little with Lily, chatting. "Listen, I know how you feel," I tell him. "When Levy told me she was pregnant, I legged it. Couldn't face it, didn't wanna be a part of it, nothing. Figured she was better off away from me for a while. But while I was away, I thought about it. Figured I needed to step up to the plate and take responsibility. And look how it's worked out for me." I wave a hand at Levy, who looks over and beams at me. "Married, two kids, nice house, couldn't be happier. Seriously, you have to go and see Erza. Throw yourself at her feet if you have to, but you need to apologise for running away from her so often. She might forgive you, she might beat your sorry ass up, but you gotta be a man. Take responsibility for the life you two created."

"Wow." Jellal looks surprised. "I didn't know you had some trouble at first. But...I'm glad that everything is okay now." He flashes me a shy smile. "Thanks, Gajeel. I think...I'll give it a go. I'll come back with you and see Erza...and Athena."

"Good. She was furious when you left last time. Though you were pretty mad too, if I recall, with her not giving Athena your surname and all that."

"I guess, looking back on it now, it was for the best that she didn't. I don't want her to be tied down to me like that. And I _did_ give Erza her surname when we were children. Athena having the same name is like taking one of my names too...and that's fine with me."

Good. Erza will be pleased, a little anyway. Objects might get thrown at first. But we've been trying to get a lock on Jellal's location for ages to drag him back, so we got really lucky here.

Jellal leans back and stretches. "I'm going to take a nap till we arrive, then. Do you mind?"

"Nah," I reply, "I gotta get back to Sting and Rogue anyway. I'll come back for you before we get off."

He chuckles. "Making sure I don't make a run for it?"

"I trust you...a little. Try it though, and I swear to Mavis I'll set Levy and her script magic on you."

"I promise, I won't go anywhere."

"Alright. See you in a few hours then." Leaning over to clap him on the shoulder, I stand and gesture to Levy and Lily. "Come on, better go check on the dragon twins."

"Oh, did they get on at the last stop like they said?" Levy asks, slipping her arm through mine. I nod, pointing to the next carriage over. "Good. Have they...did you give them the translation?"

"Yeah, they read it."

"Are they okay?"

"Reckon so. They were a bit upset, so I left them alone to come and find you."

"I hope they're okay," she murmurs, looking concerned.

"They'll be alright," I reassure her. Lily nods as he trots along by my feet.

Sting and Rogue's hushed voices meet my ears and I stop abruptly, curious. "Hold on a sec," I whisper, holding a finger to my lips as I peer around the carriage door, which is slightly ajar. Levy stands on her tiptoes to look over my shoulder, while Lily hops on top of her head.

What? I'm nosey, alright?!

Sting's sat where we left him, but Rogue has slid into his lap, leaning against him and wiping his eyes on a corner of his cloak. Sting strokes Rogue's hair, looking a little more composed. "Are you okay?" he asks softly.

"Yeah," Rogue replies, nodding. "I'm over the worst of it now."

"What a shock, huh…"

"Mm."

"Listen, Rogue. We'll be alright. Long as we got the guild at our backs, we'll be alright. Family, yeah?"

"And friends. Natsu taught us that."

Sting chuckles. "Damn Fairy Tail, they made us soft."

"I'm not complaining." Rogue squeezes Sting's hand, looking up at him with watery eyes. "You know…if it weren't for them, I don't think we would have found each other like this."

"Yeah…definitely no complaints on that front."

"I love you, you know."

"I love you too."

God, they're so sickening. Levy looks down at me with her mouth open in shock as they lean in to kiss. "When did this happen?!" she mouths.

"I'll explain later," I mouth back.

"Sting…you know we're being watched, right?"

"Yeah. Let 'em. I don't care anymore."

* * *

Several hours later, we finally pull into Magnolia station. Jellal made good on his word and didn't try to escape me, but I still kept Levy on standby in case she needed to shackle him. Lily, along with Jet and Droy, went off ahead to locate Salamander and Wendy, so we can show them the scroll, just in case they aren't at the guild. Sting and Rogue accompany us on the way there, chatting away happily with Levy, who's bombarding them with all the questions about their relationship she kept in while we were on the train. I just know she's going to blab to Mira once we get there…though I have a sneaking suspicion the demon woman already knows, she seems to have eyes and ears all over Fiore.

Wild cheers greet us, as always, when we walk through the guild doors, but it's all drowned out by Levy's ecstatic scream as she spots Shutora and Yaje, both crawling on top of a table occupied by Lucy, Wendy and Salamander. "My babies!" she cries, rushing over to sweep them into her arms. "Oh, my babies, I've missed you so much!"

She bursts into tears, hugging them close as they nuzzle her happily. I lean down to give each of them a peck on the cheek and a few soft words of greeting; of course, this was Levy's first time being away from them for ages, but they're probably used to it with me going out on long jobs. They still smile at me, but their attention is firmly on their mother and her milk making capabilities. She laughs softly and kisses my lips before carting them both off upstairs to feed them.

"Haven't they grown?" Jellel remarks from beside me. "Last time I saw them, they were so tiny."

"Yeah, they soon shot up," I grin. "Strong little guys."

"You must be very proud of them."

"Fuck, I can't even express."

Rogue taps me on the shoulder, and it's only then I realise that the whole hall has gone silent, staring at us, or rather, Jellal. Only the soft sound of a whimpering baby remains as Erza slowly stands from her seat at the bar, passing Athena over to a concerned looking Mira. Jellal's eyes widen and he suddenly looks pretty fucking scared.

"What…are you doing here, Jellal?" she demands. "Did I not make myself clear last time you left that I didn't wish to see you again?"

"Erza, hold on. Gajeel asked me to come back with him," he explains.

"Oh, did he?" She shoots a filthy look my way, to which I just shrug. Suddenly, she requips into her Purgatory armour and blasts Jellal across the room in a violent black and red blur.

Holy fuck. I better not be next. Spotting Lily hiding under Salamander's table, I slide down with him cautiously. "Mira, kindly take care of Athena for the next hour or so," Erza says in an oddly calm voice, picking up Jellal by the ear and dragging him bodily out of the guild hall.

Silence.

…

"Um…that went better than I expected," Meldy pipes up after a moment. "I'll, um, go make sure everything's okay." She hurries after them, cloak swirling around her.

"Fuck me sideways!" Sting laughs hysterically. "That was amazing! I love this guild!"

Rogue shakes his head, palm pressed to his brow. "So violent…"

"Fro thinks so too!" Frosche beams.

"Can I come out now?" I ask quietly. Salamander chuckles and pulls me out, giving a thumbs up. "Phew…"

"How did your job go, Gajeel?" Lucy asks me, completely unfazed by what just happened. "You took a lot longer than we thought you would."

"Yeah, we ran into a bit of trouble and some lengthy translations, but we got there eventually. Thanks for taking care of the twins while we were away. Anyway, I've got something for Salamander and Wendy, but they probably wanna look at it in private…emotional stuff, you know."

Wendy puts her glass down, looking curious. "Is it about our dragons?"

"Hit the nail on the head, squirt. Shown these two already –" I wave a hand in Sting and Rogue's general direction, wherever the lover boys have wandered off to – "so it's just you two left. Your choice where you wanna read it. It made us three cry like little fucking bitches, if that's an indicator."

Natsu looks sideways at Wendy, pressing a thumb to his mouth thoughtfully. "If it's about Igneel, then I wanna see now," he says. "Wendy?"

She nods. "Yes. Please show us now, Gajeel."

"Alright." I rummage around in my bag and produce the translation, dropping it onto the table. Lucy murmurs a few words in Natsu's ear and slides off the bench to join Mira at the bar, while Sting and Rogue come back over, completing the five original Slayers. Lily remains with us, as do Happy and Carla.

Wendy spreads out the translation, peering down at Levy's handwriting. "Wow…was this what you were trying to find on your job?" she asks me.

"Yeah," I reply. "Well, the original scroll is back in Crocus with the princess, but Levy wrote up the translation for our own archives."

Salamander scowls as he reads, scratching his head, but his face becomes slacker with each line, and when he reaches Igneel's words, he gasps. Wendy stays pretty impassive the whole time, but her eyes fill with tears all the same. "I don't believe it…" Salamander says quietly. "Igneel…"

"Four hundred years ago…" Wendy whispers. "Grandine...I don't…I don't understand…"

To my surprise, neither of them cry. Wendy scrubs her tears away, but she smiles warmly at me. "Thank you…thank you so much for bringing this to us. I know the truth now, even if I don't fully understand it all."

"Yeah, we're all in the clear now," grins Salamander. "Our dragons, they gave their lives for us! No use crying over it now. We gotta do our best and honour their memories."

I stare at him incredulously. "You fucking kidding me? I bawl my eyes out, _these_ two bawl their eyes out, and nothing from you?!"

"Maybe you're just a sissy, Gajeel!"

"The hell you say?! Say that to my face!"

"You're. A. Sissy!"

"Fuck you, Salamander! Fight me!"

"You're on, metal head!"

Oh yeah. I'm home again.

* * *

 _Sorry for the abrupt ending. I'm just going to completely run out of ideas if I carry on, so I will leave it here. I hope you enjoyed reading my first Gajevy work! Many thanks to Rboz for her amazing artworks, and to Hiro Mashima for providing such a wonderful world. See you all again soon._

 _Tia_


End file.
